Original Heroes
by GreenNoseRing
Summary: Based on the original characters for COTT. Discontinued for now!
1. Chapter 1

Brief Story Summary:

I read about the original heroes on Mr. Goodchild's blog, and it got me thinking. What is they DID decide to keep the characters of 'Class of the Titans' like that? Would the story be relatively the same? Or different? This is MY version of the original heroes, (which all have the same names, minus Trent, who is now Theresa) and their adventures. Hearts will be broken, friendships will be tested, and lives will be changed forever. But this is New Olympia, and nothing is ever normal there.

With respects to Brad Goodchild and the rest of the people behind my favorite series.

For all of you who haven't heard of the original plan for COTT, check it out on the original series bible, at But here's a brief summary of my version of the characters…. (More info at Mr. Goodchild's site)

Jay

(Descendant of Jason)

Jay is feeling lately like the world is against him. After having a fight with his uncle, he is forced to move out of his house and move in with the immortal centaur, Chiron, an old friend of his ancestor. Now going to New Olympia Academy, he meets a new group of friends and takes the first step into adventure….

Odie

(Descendant of Odysseus)

Odie is almost always upbeat and positive, which is something unusual considering he lives in the Underworld with Hades and his split-personality wife, Persephone. But Odie doesn't mind staying with them. Secretly, he holds a soft spot for the queen of the dead, and yearns for her to give up life with Hades and run away to the Bahamas with _him_.

Herry

(Descendant of Hercules)

Poor Herry. It isn't easy having a best friend who constantly gets you in trouble with the school principal. It's even harder to have to follow in your great, great, great, great (I'd keep going, but we'd be here all day) grandfather's footsteps. But now's the time for Herry to get his chance…

Atlanta

(Descendant of Atalanta)

Girls constantly tease Atlanta for the fact that the only friends she has are boys. But all this is behind the tomboy's back, of course. The females of the Academy know that if _anyone _made fun of Atlanta to her face, she'd hit them so hard they'd be sent into next week. But there are some problems that Atlanta can't solve with violence. Two of her best friends have HUGE crushes on her. This would be a big issue with Atlanta if only she knew about it…

Archie

(Descendant of Achilles)

Sarcastic, fast, and powerful. Archie could easily take down any challenge that comes his way. At least, that's what his mentor, Ares, says. Archie's only weaknesses? His wonky heel (Thanks, Achilles) his fear of water, and his best friend, Atlanta.

Trent

(Descendant of Theseus)

Handsome, popular Trent could have no problem getting a date for the senior prom, if he wasn't already hung up over one girl. That's right, Trent also has a crush on Atlanta, and he and Archie are constantly fighting for her attention. Maybe the class president should have Ms. Aphrodite as a mentor, instead of Mr. Hermes…

Neil

(Descendant of Narcissus)

Jay sometimes wonders how Neil became friends with the group. He's stuck-up, egotistical, and all-around pretty boy. Bu Neil has history with the rest of the team, and is just plain lucky, I guess. Something that the group is going to need….


	2. Welcome To the First

Welcome To the First Day of the Rest of Your Life

It was another typical in the Alexander household. Timothy Alexander and his nephew, Jason, (or 'Jay', as his friends referred to him by) were arguing, as usual. And it was clear that neither of them was going to back down.

"How are you going to support your family, Jason?" his uncle asked him, "You're going to need money!"

"By being a _plumber_?" Jay asked, "Um… no offense, Uncle Tim, but I want a job that issues me a little more respect. A job where I can actually help people."

"My job does help people," Timothy said, impatiently.

"Not having running water isn't exactly a national emergency," Jay sighed.

"Well, what DO you want to do?" Timothy asked.

"I-I want to join the Coast Guard," Jay stuttered.

"WHAT?" his uncle yelled.

"You heard me," Jay told him, "I _hate_ plumbing, I hate this house, and I hate YOU!"

Everything was completely silent for a moment. Jay instantly regretted what he said.

"Well if you hate me _and_ this house, get out," Jay's uncle said quietly.

"What?" Jay asked, not believing his ears.

"GET OUT!" Timothy shouted.

Jay ran up to his room, through a bag together, and climbed out the window. That tyrant didn't need to tell _him_ twice!

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

As Jay walked down the street of the city, he instantly knew that he was totally screwed. He had no place to go and no one to go _to_. He sat down at the side of the sidewalk and put his head between his legs.

"This day officially cannot get any worse," he muttered.

"And so it has to get better," a voice said into his ear.

Jay looked up, startled. A tall figure wearing a long, purple cloak was standing in front of him. Jay leaped up, startled, and instantly fell back down.

"I don't have any money!" he told the person.

"It's alright, Jay," the person chuckled, "I'm not go hurt you, I'm here to help."

"How did you know my name?" Jay asked, terrified.

"I know many things," the person said, lifting the hood over its head down. The figure was revealed to be an elderly woman with gray hair pulled up into a bun.

"I understand that you need a place to stay?" the woman questioned.

"Yeah," Jay said, "But how did you-"

"That doesn't matter now," the woman said, "Just come with me."

Jay, not knowing what else to do, listened to the women and followed her down the dimly-lit street.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

About ten minutes later, they arrived at a two-story, blue house with a large lawn.

"Is this your house?" Jay asked, nervously.

"Oh no," the woman told him, "It belongs to a friend of mine."

"Alright, then," Jay muttered as the lady knocked on the door.

"Who is there?" a deep voice shouted from inside the house.

"Stop worrying about vacuum salesmen, Chiron," the woman called back, "It's only me."

Jay could swear he heard what sounded like horse footsteps as the person inside walked towards the door. The entranceway swung open and there stood…

Someone that was half-man, half-horse.

Jay screamed and started to run away when he felt someone grab his collar.

"Don't be ridiculous, boy," the horse-man growled, "Come inside."

Jay tried to grab onto the door-frame, but the "monster" easily over-powered him.

"HELP! SOMEBODY HELP ME!" Jay shouted.

"Keep quiet," the horse-man whispered, covering Jay's mouth, "Do you want to wake the whole neighborhood?"

He dragged Jay inside the house, the cloak-wearing woman trailing after them, and plopped him down onto the couch. The woman sat beside him.

"It's going to be okay, Jay," the woman kindly told him.

But Jay was shaking with fear.

"Is it true, Hera?" the horse-man asked, excitedly, "Is this boy the last of the seven?"

"Yes, Chiron," the woman smiled, "I have found him."

"Wait," Jay said, "Hera? Chiron? Aren't those the…"

"Queen of the Gods and the teacher of ancient Greek heroes?" Chiron chuckled.

"The very same," Hera said, "But we'll explain more in the morning. Chiron, Jay will have to stay with you. He's having some problems at home right now."

"It would be an honor," Chiron said, bowing, "Can I also offer you a room for the night, Hera?"

"That would be lovely," Hera told him, "But I must really get back to the Academy. The other Gods will surely want to hear the news. Make sure Jay gets some rest. I will need him at the school bright and early tomorrow. Take care."

And with that, Hera pulled her hood over her head again and vanished into thin air.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"You will be sleeping here," Chiron stated, opening the door to a brightly painted room, "Now please follow Hera's advice and get some rest."

"Not until I get some answers," Jay said.

"All will be revealed tomorrow," Chiron told him.

"That's not good enough!" Jay all but shouted, "I've been taken by an immortal goddess to an ancient centaur's house in the middle of the night, and I want to know what's going on!"

Chiron smiled. "Alright," he chuckled.

He gestured towards the large wooden bed. Jay sat down.

"I trust you've heard of the hero, Jason?" Chiron said.

"The leader of the Argonauts? What about him?" Jay asked.

"Jason was your ancestor. You are his namesake," Chiron said.

Jay almost fainted.

"What?" he asked, "How do you know this?"

"It wasn't easy to find out, believe you me," Chiron told him, "There was much research involved."

"And why was it so important to find out?" Jay asked.

"The prophecy," Chiron said.

"What prophecy?" Jay asked.

"I don't know the exact details," Chiron said, "But the point is, something very bad has escaped from its prison, and you and six others have the power to put it back. That's all I can tell you."

"Wha-?" Jay started, but couldn't finish his sentence. Too many thoughts were going through his head. What was this 'evil'? Where had it escaped from? Who were the other six Chiron talked about?

"That's all I can say for now," Chiron said, walking towards the door, "Goodnight, Jay."

Jay was about to yell, "Wait! Tell me more!" but he was afraid that if he said _anything_, he would get sick all over the wooden floor. So instead he did the only thing he could do. He pulled the blue sheets over his head and went to sleep.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

A few blocks away from Chiron's house, five friends were gathering in a local playground.

"Where's Odie?" a tall boy with bright-purple hair and a blue sweatshirt asked, annoyed, "He's the one who dragged us all out of bed to meet him here!"

"Just be patient, Archie," a short girl with shoulder-length, strawberry-blonde hair asked, "Odie said it was important."

"Well he better be here soon," a muscular boy with a green T-shirt complained, "Or I'm going home!"

"Yeah," a handsome boy with light blonde hair whined, "I need my beauty sleep."

"Neil, can you _please_ be quiet?" a boy with honey-colored hair and a green sweater with an orange stripe asked, "I think I can sense where Odie is. He's coming around the corner…NOW!"

Sure enough, a small boy with thick black hair came sprinting towards the friends.

"Guys," he puffed, leaning his hands on his knees, "I've got…big news!"

"Duh!" the purple-haired boy exclaimed, "Why would we come here so late if you didn't?"

The strawberry-blonde girl glared at her friend before turning to the small boy.

"What is it, Odie?" she asked patiently.

"I was just about to fall asleep, when I heard the door to the house bolt open," Odie began, "I crept downstairs, thinking it was Cerberus again, when I saw that it was Hera, and she was talking to Hades and Persephone. So I leaned down and began to listen…"

"You mean, you were eavesdropping on them?" the boy with the green sweater asked, amusement forming on his face.

"In all essence, yes," Odie snapped, annoyed, "Moving on. Hades was a bit mad at Hera for coming in so late, and Persephone got angry at her, and well, you know what Persephone's like when she's angry. She's kind of, scary."

The others nodded, shivering.

"But Hera told them she had a good reason. She said that she found the last person to complete the prophecy!"

"WHAT?" the others shouted.

"It's true," Odie insisted, "His name's Jay. And he lives here! He's staying with Chiron now because he's had some sort of issue at home."

"Typical gods," the strawberry-blonde girl muttered, "They search the whole world for one person, and it turns out that he's right where they would never think of looking."

"But this is awesome!" The boy with the green sweater said happily, "Now we have a shot of beating Cronus!"

"What do you mean, 'a shot'?" the boy with the purple hair asked his friend, "We WILL defeat Cronus!"

"Heck yes we will!" The strawberry-blonde girl giggled.

The others let out cheers of excitement and joy, and they all slapped high-fives.

"To us!" they all shouted.

_Woot! First chapter! Hope you all enjoyed meeting the "new" characters and will tune into later chapters! _

_-GreenNoseRing_


	3. Monday Morning

Disclaimer: I forgot to mention before, but of course I don't own Class of the Titans!

Monday Morning

Jay

Jay woke up, his head spinning. He had had the weirdest dream last night! There was a centaur, and a goddess, and his uncle had kicked him out…. He looked at his surroundings. He was in a blue and yellow painted room. There were two bureaus, a stone fireplace, and a full-length mirror. He lay back down.

Crap.

Atlanta

"I don't need to read Billy Shakespeare, meet Juliet or Mavolio…" Atlanta sang loudly in her shower. She was interrupted when her cell phone rang. The small girl stumbled out of the water and wrapped a yellow towel around her body before grabbing the phone.

"Hello?" she answered.

"Lan?" a male voice asked.

"Uh-huh," she said, drying her hair with a new towel.

"It's Archie," the voice stuttered.

"Hey," she smiled.

"What's up?" Archie asked her.

"You tell me," Atlanta said, "You're the one who called."

"Oh right," Archie chuckled, "I was just wondering if maybe you'd like to go see that new horror movie Friday."

"That'd be cool," Atlanta said, "Who's going?"

"Oh, nobody," Archie told her, "I just thought it would be fun if maybe just you and I went. You know how the others hate horror movies. I mean, Trent almost wet his pants that time we saw 'The Grudge'."

"Alright," Atlanta giggled, "On Friday, then?"

"Friday," Archie said, "See you at school."

"See ya," Atlanta said, clicking her phone shut.

As Atlanta was getting dressed, the phone rang _again_.

"Hello?" she said, picking up the phone.

"Hi, Atlanta," the voice on the other end said.

"Oh, hey, Trent," Atlanta said.

"Hi," Trent said again.

There for a few uncomfortable seconds of silence

"Awkward…" Atlanta said in a high-pitched voice.

Trent laughed before asking, "Are you doing anything on Friday?"

"Actually, I'm going…" Atlanta began to say before she stopped herself. She didn't want to say that she was going to the movies with Archie, because lately, when she mentioned Archie to Trent, or Trent to Archie, they got all silent and moody.

"I'm busy that night," Atlanta told Trent.

"Oh," Trent said, "Well, what about Saturday?"

"Saturday's good," Atlanta said.

"Okay, do you want to come to my house, and we can watch TV or something?" Trent asked.

"Sounds fun," Atlanta told him.

"Okay," Trent said, "Bye!"

"Bye!" Atlanta said.

She got changed and flopped onto her bed.

"How did I get so popular lately?" she asked herself out loud.

Archie

"Yeah!" Archie cheered, jumping around his room, which was decorated with various statues and sculptures due to his Aunt Debbie's fetish for interesting knick-knacks.

He wasn't one to complain, he only lived there.

"I'm going out with Atlanta! I'm going out with Atlanta!" he sang.

"Arkie happy?" his little cousin, Lizzie, asked, stepping into the bedroom.

"Yes, Arkie happy," Archie told her, picking the three year-old up and spinning her around the room. Lizzie giggled in delight.

Trent

Trent, however, was not happy about his upcoming "date" with Atlanta.

'What was I thinking?' he thought, 'I have NO idea how to entertain a girl, let alone _Atlanta_! What am I going to do?' He let out a shout of dismay and fell to the floor.

'Why did I have to fall for Atlanta of all people?" he asked himself, "She's my best friend. And she definitely doesn't feel the same way, she just sees me as someone to pass the time with. Why is growing up so HARD!"

Trent cupped his head in his hands.

"Stupid, stupid, stupid!" he yelled, pounding his foot against the wall.

"Honey? Are you okay up there?" his mother called from downstairs in the dining room.

"Yes, Mom!" he called back.

No, not at all.

Herry

"Where's my sandwich?" Herry asked, his head in the fridge, searching for the bun with sausage, lettuce, tomato, and mustard he had made the night before. "Hercules! Did you eat my lunch _again_?"

"Sorry, Herry," the god burped as he walked into the small kitchen.

Herry groaned with aggravation as he slammed the door shut, shaking the entire refrigerator.

"You know, I'm kinda sick of having to use my well-earned money to buy nasty cafeteria spaghetti Bolognese," he complained, reaching for his wallet off the table.

Hercules chuckled and handed Herry a five dollar bill from the inside of his pocket.

"Thanks," Herry muttered.

"No problem," Hercules replied cheerfully, "You need a ride to school?"

"Nah, I think I'll walk," Herry said.

"Nonsense, take your truck," Hercules told him, tossing him a keychain with a small, silver key dangling from it.

"_My_ truck?" Herry asked, "You mean…"

Hercules nodded.

"Alright!" Herry cheered, pumping his arms up into the air.

He reached into his pant pocket and pulled out his cell phone.

"Archie?" he asked when his friend picked up, "Don't leave for school yet, I've got a little surprise…"

Neil

Neil yawned loudly and gracefully stretched his arms. The blonde-haired boy rolled over in his bed and looked at his alarm clock.

It read 7:30.

"Crap!" he shouted.

Neil quickly jumped out of bed, got dressed, and ran downstairs.

"Why didn't you wake me up?" he asked Aphrodite, who was looking at herself in a handheld mirror and picking something caught between her teeth.

"You know, I was thinking about it," she said, "But then I noticed that I had a piece of lettuce in my teeth, and I can't just walk around with gross, green stuff wedged in my gorgeous smile! So I needed to pull it out, but it took me longer than I thought! Do you know how hard it is to get food out of your teeth without breaking a nail?"

"You've got a point…" Neil said.

"See? Beauty before education, remember that, sweetie," Aphrodite told him.

Neil was just about to respond when a loud honking noise filled his ears.

Odie

"Odie, it's time to greet the day!" Persephone said cheerfully as she entered her tenant's bedroom.

"Five more minutes," Odie muttered.

"Odie," Persephone said, shaking him, "Odie? Odie"

But Odie still remained in bed.

"Odie!" Persephone shouted, changing into her angry form.

"Aaaaaaaah!" Odie screamed as he leapt out of the bed.

"Oh good, you're awake," Persephone said, returning to her normal form, "Breakfast is ready!"

"Uh huh," Odie said, still shaking.

Jay

Jay walked down the stairs into what seemed to be the kitchen. Chiron was standing over the stove, preparing breakfast.

"Um, good morning," Jay called.

Chiron turned around.

"Good morning!" he said, smiling, "How do you like your eggs?"

"Anyway is fine," Jay murmured, sitting down at the table.

A few minutes later, Chiron put a plate full of bacon, scrambled eggs, and French toast in front of his new house guest.

"Eat up," the centaur instructed, "You've got a big day today."

"So people keep telling me," Jay said.

After Jay was done eating, he and Chiron just stood around the table in silence.

It looked like Chiron was about to say something when there was a knock on the door.

"Um, Jay, could you answer that?" Chiron asked, "I would, but…" He gestured to the horse-half of his body.

"No problem," Jay told him.

Jay got up from the table and walked down the hall to the door. He was just about to open it when it swung open and hit him square in the face, knocking him down.

"Chiron?" a girl called, stepping into the house, "Are you here?" She looked down and saw Jay on the floor.

"Oh my God!" she exclaimed, bending down besides Jay, "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," Jay reassured her, looking at the girl.

She was fairly pretty, he decided, with her big hazel eyes and heart shaped face. She was wearing a red, long-sleeved shirt, white cargo shorts, and black Converse running shoes. A white and blue striped cap was pulled over her strawberry-blonde hair.

"Nice, Lan," a boy with bright purple hair chuckled as he walked into the room. He was wearing a blue sweatshirt with matching shorts and a pair of black sandals. Jay noticed that he also had some sort of gold armor covering his left ankle.

"Shut up!" the girl snapped before turning back to Jay. "Honestly, I am so sorry, I can be so freaking clumsy sometimes."

"Or most of the time," the purple-haired boy chuckled.

The girl stood up and hit him on the arm. Then she turned back to Jay and helped him up.

"You're Jay, right?" she asked.

"How do so many people I've never even seen before seem to know me?" Jay asked.

The girl gave a little tinkling laugh. "I'm Atlanta," she told him, sticking her hand out. Jay shook it.

"And this butthead is Archie," Atlanta said, jerking a thumb over to the guy with purple hair.

"Hey," Archie waved.

"Um, I don't mean to sound rude or anything, but what are you doing here?" Jay asked.

"To give you a ride, of course," Atlanta smiled.

"A bit of a welcome offering," Archie said.

"Um, okay," Jay said.

"Are you leaving Jay?" Chiron asked from the kitchen.

"Yeah!" Jay called.

"Hey, Chiron!" Archie and Atlanta both shouted together.

"Hello, children!" Chiron shouted back, "Be sure to keep an eye out for Jay, alright?"

"We will!" they yelled.

"C'mon, Jay," Atlanta said, grabbing her new friend's wrist, "Just wait 'till you see our ride."

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

The transport turned out to be a HUGE red truck that was awesomely tricked out. A muscular boy with thick, dark hair was behind the wheel. There were two people sitting beside him. A tall boy with thick blonde hair and deep blue eyes, and a shorter boy with light-brown hair and bright green eyes.

"Get in," Atlanta told Jay, throwing one of the door's to the backseat open. Jay did what he was told, Archie and Atlanta going in after him.

"Everyone this is Jay," Atlanta told the other people in the car. "Jay this is Herry, (she pointed to the boy driving) Neil, (the blonde), and Trent."(the one with green eyes)

"Hey," Jay waved. The other boys nodded.

"Herry, how grateful am I that Hercules FINALLY gave you his truck?" Atlanta asked, stretching out on her seat.

"Yeah, if he didn't, we'd still be riding to school in _Trent's_ car," Archie commented.

"What's wrong with my car?" Trent asked, spinning around.

"It's waaaaaaayyyyyy too cramped in there, dude," Archie told him.

Trent frowned, and then faced the front again.

"Herry?" Neil whispered, poking his friend's arm.

Herry ignored him, his eyes focused on the road.

"Herry?" Neil continued, "Herry? Herry? Herry? Herry? Herry? Herry? Herry? Herry?"

"WHAT?" Herry screamed.

"Can I drive?" Neil asked.

"NO!" Herry thundered.

"What about me?" Atlanta asked.

"NO! You haven't even gotten your license yet!" Herry reminded her.

"That's why this is a perfect time for me to practice," Atlanta said, crossing her arms and sliding further into her seat.

Jay had honestly never been in a weirder group.


	4. The Academy

_**Pyro's hoodie:** My stories ARE different! (But in a good way)Get used to it! I love my first reviewers, thank you!_

_**Caity party princess: **I am seriously your biggest fan! I've read all your stories on Ficwad and loved them all, especially "Can't Stand It" and "Portals". It's awesome to see an author I like is interested in my stories!_

_**Citrus-Lime:** PLEASE DON'T BE MAD! I am so, so sorry! I like Theresa too and I am so sad she couldn't be included in my story, but wait till you see the new love interest I have for Jay, bwah ha ha! I just don't know who she should be descended from though! COTT already took all the good ones! Stamps foot_

_**Joybella: **I liked Theresa/Trent's original look, that's why I wrote the story! LOL! I hope that Atlanta ends up with Archie too! A/A forever! But if she does, what will happen with Trent? Maybe I can get Atlanta and Trent to go out on a couple of dates, then realize that they're better off as friends, and then Trent can find someone else and Archie and Atlanta can get together! A sort of 'Radio Free Roscoe', Travis/Lily situation. Even though Travis still should have ended up with Lily! Okay, I'll stop now._

Disclaimer: I do not own Class of the Titans! If I did, Trent would be made a character. (He could be Theresa's brother or something…)

The Academy

"Herry, you missed the turn," Archie said, tapping his friend on the shoulder.

"No, I didn't," Herry argued.

"Yes, you did," Archie insisted, "The Academy's on 22nd street, we're on 25th street now."

"Crap!" Herry yelled, pounding on the steering wheel and setting the horn off.

"Jeez, Herr, come down," Atlanta said, covering her ears.

Herry muttered curses under his breath and turned the car around, nearly causing a traffic jam in the process.

A few minutes later they arrived at what seemed to be an abandoned computer warehouse.

"Um, you giving a hobo a ride or something?" Jay asked, trying to make a joke.

"Nope," Trent replied, "This is it!"

"Uh, okay," Jay laughed, fully convinced that these people were insane.

"Just trust us," Atlanta told him, pulling Jay out of the car.

Atlanta walked up to the gate, her friends and Jay trailing after her, and stood at the gate.

"Shit, I forgot," she muttered, reaching into her pocket. She pulled out a gold medallion with a long chain. There was a 'J' written in calligraphy on the front.

"I was supposed to give this to you," she said to Jay, tossing him the necklace.

"Where did you get that?" Herry asked her.

"Hermes stopped by before you picked me up," Atlanta said, matter-of-factly.

"I don't really wear jewelry," Jay admitted, tentatively.

"Well, dude, you better start," Archie said, smirking.

"Try it out," Atlanta told him.

"Excuse me?" Jay asked.

"Try. It. Out," Atlanta repeated slowly.

"Yeah, I heard you," Jay said, putting his hand onto his forehead, "What I meant was, what do I 'try it out' on?"

"The gate," Atlanta laughed, pointing to a large padlock.

Upon closer inspection, Jay saw that the lock had the same design as the back of his medallion, a sort of sundial-like carving.

"Stick the front end in," Atlanta instructed.

Jay did as he was told, sticking the side with the 'J' on it into the front of the padlock.

The sundial on the necklace instantly began to turn slowly. When it had went in a complete circle, the lock _clicked!_ open.

"Now open on the gate," Trent said.

Jay pushed the gate until there was enough room for someone to slide through.

"Now go in," Neil chuckled.

"This is stupid," Jay muttered as he walked in. But upon entering the dusty courtyard of the warehouse, his mouth dropped open.

"Whoa," he whispered, his eyes widening.

The computer warehouse was gone. In its place was a magnificent building with large glass windows, smooth brick walls, and sweeping grass lawns. A statue of what was unmistakably Atlas holding a large golden globe was in the center of the field. Various teenagers were walking around, talking with one another.

"Where are we?" Jay asked.

"New Olympia Academy, of course," Archie said, as he and is friends stepped through the portal.

"Jay likey?" Atlanta asked, elbowing him in the ribs.

"Ah-huh," Jay squeaked, nodding his head.

"GUYS!" a voice shouted, "DID YOU BRING HIM?"

A short boy with thick, black hair wearing a white button-up shirt, black dress pants, white shoes, and a red and gold striped tie came racing down the steps of the school.

"Yeah, we brought him, Odie," Herry told the new boy as he reached the group.

Odie turned to Jay, looking him up and down for a second.

"Hi," he said, "I'm Odie."

"Jay."

Odie nodded and turned back to his friends, whispering something to them that Jay couldn't hear.

After the huddle broke, Atlanta turned back to Jay and smiled.

"Come on," she smiled, "Archie, Herry, and I have been assigned to give you the grand tour."

"Alright," Jay said.

Atlanta grabbed his wrist and pulled him towards the school, Archie and Herry following close behind.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"Now you see, Jay, New Olympia Academy isn't like any other school," Atlanta said as they walked down the marble hallway.

"I think I realized that when a crappy old building turned into something totally different before my very eyes," Jay told her.

"Yes, that'll do it," Atlanta giggled, "But moving on. The Academy is built up on students who are the descendants of famous figures of Greek history. We all have special powers, and here is where we learn how to harness these abilities."

"That's cool," Jay said, "So who are you descended from?"

"Atalanta," Atlanta said, "So I've inherited her hunting and running skills. Along with the ability to have to keep moving. Archie's descended from Achilles, so he's nearly invincible, except for his faulty heel, and Herry's from Hercules, so he, of course, has inhuman strength. And Trent, Odie, and Neil's ancestors are Theseus, Odysseus, and Narcissus, so they all have their little traits in them."

Jay nodded, his head swimming with fascination.

"Ah, jeez," Herry said, trying to steer Atlanta into a nearby hallway.

"What?" Atlanta snapped, then she saw what Herry was looking at, "Shit. Well, MY day is officially ruined!"

"What is it?" Jay asked, looking for the source of Atlanta's aggravation.

"Hilda Melaneium," Atlanta answered snidely, "She thinks she's _soooooo_ special, just because she's the descendant of _Helen_."

Jay raised his eyebrows, remembering the story of Helen, and how her immense beauty caused a ten year war between Greece and Troy. He looked over to the source of Atlanta's deep hatred.

This girl was in fact very beautiful, with her long, golden hair and deeply tanned skin, but it was one of the girls _with_ Hilda that caught Jay's interest.

She also had long, blonde hair, but it wasn't gold like Hilda's. The color was a pale yellow, almost like a freshly-peeled banana. Her eyes were like two sapphires, and she was very tall, almost as tall as Jay. She looked up at him and smiled, showing teeth that looked like rows of little pearls.

"Well, well, well, look what we have here," Hilda said, walking up to Atlanta, her group following closely behind, "Atlanta Fielding and her little posse."

"Hey, Hilda," Atlanta smiled, her voice dripping with false niceness.

"Nice shirt," Hilda commented, "Sale from the bin marked, "Only Fugly Things in Here?"

Atlanta balled her hands into tight fists and took a step towards Hilda, but Archie held her back.

"Don't listen to her, Lan," he whispered.

"But seriously, Atlanta," Hilda continued, "I have to do a report on a great figure of history, and I was thinking of doing _your_ ancestor! But I looked her up and it seems all she's good at doing is pissing Aphrodite off by whoring around in her temple!"

That did it. Atlanta was just about to walk over to Hilda and slap her right across her smug little face when Archie grabbed her wrist.

"Let me go, Arch," she told him, "There's a little bitch over there that has an appointment with my fist!"

Hilda emitted a high-pitched laugh and strolled over to Atlanta, who was struggling so aggressively now that she had to be withheld by Herry.

"Oh, poor little Lanny doesn't get to get even with mean old Hilda," Hilda cooed, "It makes perfect sense really, I don't think you could lay a hand on me, you big slut! You don't think I don't know why you hang around with these boys? We all know that the only reason you hang out with them is to get them in your pants! You little whore; you don't deserve to be called a girl!"

"SHUT UP!" Archie shouted.

Hilda looked at him, startled.

"You shut your mouth right now!" Archie told her, his teeth gritting, "You are such a gigantic bitch! What has Atlanta done to you that make you want to treat her like this? She is not a slut, and neither was Atalanta, the only person's ancestor at this school who was a whore was _yours_! And don't give me this crap about Atlanta only hanging out with guys because she wants to sleep with us! That's bullshit! She's been my best friend since before we were in kindergarten! So you walk away before I'm forced to kick your ass!"

Helen looked like she was going to cry for a minute, her lip was trembling like crazy, but she turned around and just strolled off, her group trailing after. The girl Jay noticed looked back at him with apology in her eyes.

"Archie, that was awesome!" Atlanta screamed happily, throwing her arms around her friend.

"Well, I'm just full of surprises," Archie smiled.

"I'm thinking I'm going to be hanging around with an interesting group," Jay commented.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"And then he's like: 'So you walk away before I'm forced to kick your ass'!" Herry laughed as he told the rest of his friends the story at lunch.

The others laughed loudly.

"My hero," Atlanta giggled, wrapping her arm playfully around Archie.

The bell rang loudly, snapping Jay out of the daydream he was having of the girl he saw that day.

"Class is starting, let's go," Trent said, his voice sounding a bit angry.

The others stood up. Trent grabbed his backpack and stomped off. Atlanta ran to catch up with him.

"Whoa, Trent. What's the matter?" Atlanta asked, cocking her head to the side.

"Nothing," he snapped.

"Trent…" Atlanta started.

"Nothing's wrong," Trent told her.

"Yes, there is," Atlanta said.

Trent muttered something under his breath and walked faster. Atlanta jumped in front of him, stopping him in his tracks.

"Trent, you're freaking me out," Atlanta said.

Trent looked at her and smiled.

"Seriously, nothing's wrong," he told her.

"Okay," Atlanta said unsurely, "Let's go. We have Socials."

"Fine," Trent groaned.

Atlanta laughed and kicked him lightly on the back.


	5. Meeting Palmer and Girlfight!

**Pyro's hoodie:** Thank you for your review! That scene was one of my favorites, too! I thought that Hilda would be a one-time character but since others seem to want her to come back she will, so keep an eye out!

**Raven Child2:** Thank you for review and I appreciate your compliments!

**Caity party princess: **You are very welcome for my comment! Thank _you_ for reading my story and taking time to write awesome reviews! I also feel sorry for Trent; he's a cute little geek of a boy, isn't he? But his time with Atlanta will come, even if he doesn't wind up dating her.

Meeting Palmer/Girlfight

Jay stumbled into his last class (Biology) feeling slightly dizzy. He couldn't stop thinking about that girl, and it was annoying the heck outta him! She was so pretty, with her long hair and beautiful blue eyes…..

'_Stop!'_ he thought angrily to himself, _'Atlanta and he others OBVIOUSLY don't like her, she hangs out with Hilda! Why mess up a new friendship over one stupid girl!'_

Just then, a silhouette stood in the classroom doorway, and in walked… _her!_

Oh, shit.

The girl looked confused as she walked around, looking for a seat. Finally, she noticed the free one next to Jay and walked to it.

"Would you mind if I sat here?" she asked.

"No, not at all," Jay said, pulling open the chair.

"Thanks," the girl smiled, putting her books down and slumping into the seat.

She looked over to Jay and cocked her head to the side.

"Hey," she said, "Aren't you that guy I saw this morning?"

"Um, well, it's-ah…" Jay stuttered, "I mean, yeah. It was me."

"Cool," the girl said, "Sorry about Hilda. She can be a bit of a bee-otch sometimes. I seriously don't know what's going on with Atlanta and I seriously don't know if I want to know. I think it has something to do with this thing that happened when we were in, like, sixth-grade…. Sorry, I'm getting ahead of myself, I'm Palmer."

"Palmer?" Jay asked, chuckling slightly.

"It means 'Peacemaker'," Palmer explained, "I didn't do a very good job of showing it this morning, though."

Jay laughed, leaning back in his chair, put turning back when he realized that she was waiting for his name. "I'm Jay."

"Jay," Palmer echoed, "Nice name? You descended from Jason or something?"

Jay stared at her. "How did you know?"

"I was just guessing, I swear," Palmer laughed.

"Okay," Jay said, "So who are _you_ descended from?"

"Perseus," Palmer replied.

"Perseus? That's so cool!" Jay exclaimed, "That means you're descended from Zeus also, right?"

"With about half the population at this school," Palmer giggled, "You _must_ be new!"

"You don't know the half of it," Jay muttered.

"Jay!" a voice shouted from the other side of the classroom, "I didn't know you were in our Bio class! Get over here!"

Jay looked up and saw Odie and Neil, waving at him wildly.

"Um, my friends are calling me," Jay told Palmer, "Do you mind if I…."

"It's fine," Palmer told him.

Jay smiled gratefully and went over to the empty seat next to Odie.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"Dude, you haven't even be here a whole day and already you're chatting up _Palmer Ridgley_!" Neil exclaimed, sounding impressed.

"What?" Jay asked, "She a big deal around here or something?"

"Oh, yeah," Odie said, "I'd probably be nuts over her myself it I wasn't…"

"Already totally nuts over Persephone?" Neil chuckled.

"Shut up!" Odie whispered, slapping his friend on the arm.

"Owwww!" Neil whined, "Whoops. Speak of the devil."

Jay's eyes traced to where Neil was looking at and saw that a very attractive woman with a sheet of silvery-blonde hair and pale skin had just entered the room.

"Settle down, boys," she warned Odie and Neil.

"Yes ma'am," the two boys said together.

"Odie lives in the Underworld with Hades and Persephone and he is _totally_ in love with her!" Neil explained to Jay.

"Shut up!" Odie said again.

"Odie," Persephone said calmly, "Do you have something you want to say to the class?"

"No, Ms. Persephone," Odie muttered, sliding slowly down into his seat.

"Odie and Persephone, sitting in a tree," Neil giggled, "K-I-S-S-I-N-G!"

"What are you, five!" Odie yelled.

"Odie!" Persephone snapped, "I'm surprised at you! Once more and maybe a little time spent after class will teach you to pay a bit more respect to me and your fellow students!"

Odie turned bright red and slid further into his seat.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

Atlanta, as it turned out, wasn't having a better time than Odie.

It was gym, a subject she usually liked, since she was in a co-ed class with Trent and Archie, but today was different. Today she found out that _Hilda_ had been transferred into the class.

"Alright, kids," Artemis told them, pacing along the bleachers, "Today we'll be practicing battle exercises. We'll need a couple people to show us an example of typical fighting skills. Any volunteers?"

No one raised their hand.

"Okay, looks like _I'll_ have to pick," Artemis told them, "Let's see…"

Artemis scanned the rows.

"Hilda," Artemis selected. Hilda looked up from her giggling girlfriends and pouted.

"And…" Artemis exclaimed, her eyes still searching.

'_Not me! Not me!_' Atlanta begged silently, crossing her fingers.

"Atlanta!"

Archie and Trent burst out laughing. Atlanta groaned and got up.

"Have fun," Trent smiled, patting Atlanta's back.

Atlanta trotted down the steps and into the center of the gym's track, where Hilda was already standing.

"Get ready," Artemis instructed them.

"You're going down, bitch," Hilda whispered.

"In your dreams," Atlanta snorted.

"You don't have your little man slut of a boyfriend here to defend you," Hilda told her, "He's over in the bleachers, sitting with your other guy whore!" Hilda hissed.

"Shut your mouth right now," Atlanta told her.

"Or what? You'll tell your daddy?" Hilda asked, pretending to look scared, "Oh, that's right, you don't have a daddy!"

"GO!" Artemis shouted.

Atlanta let out a scream of rage and slapped Hilda across the face.

"You little bitch!" Hilda shrieked, punching her in the stomach.

Atlanta replied by stamping her foot.

Hilda screamed again and charged into Atlanta's chest. Before long they were both on the floor, trying to get a punch at each other.

"LADIES!" Artemis shouted, "THIS IS _NOT_ PROPER BATTLE PROCEDURE!"

"I don't know, it feels pretty good to me!" Atlanta screamed, hitting Hilda in the nose.

By then, a group of people had gathered around. Most of the boys were cheering, while the girls looked scared.

"LET GO OFF MY HAIR!"

"ONLY IF YOU GET YOUR FAT ASS OFF MY BACK!"

Atlanta could feel her running bra edging up her stomach, and the boys started cheering louder.

"ATLANTA! STOP!" Trent shouted.

"YOU'RE BETTER THAN THIS, ATLANTA!" Archie yelled, "JUST GET OFF HER, ALRIGHT!"

"Not gonna happen, guys!" Atlanta shrieked.

Trent and Archie ran over to the two girls, each of them wrapping their arms around one of the girl's stomachs and lifting her off the other.

"LET ME GO!" Hilda screamed at Archie.

"Don't think so!" Archie told her.

Atlanta was screaming loudly and trying to get out of Trent's grasp.

"I'm VERY disappointed in both of you!" Artemis told the feuding girls, "Report to Ms. Hera's office immediately!"

Atlanta whispered a few cusses under her breath and walked out the door, Hilda following close behind.

"This is not a good day for Atlanta, is it?" Trent asked Archie.

"Nope," Archie replied.


	6. Just a lil' note

Okay, everyone listen to my "very serious announcement!" What I wanted to ask you guys is….

Who should I pair Atlanta up with? Archie or Trent?

I started out wanting to put Archie and Atlanta together, (A/A forever!) but then I started to feel sorry for Trent because I made him into such a cute little guy and it made me feel sad that I had no intention of having him go out with the girl of his dreams.

SO I NEED YOU PEOPLE TO VOTE! ARCHIE OR TRENT?

I swear, if no one responds I'll just slash the two of them just get Atlanta to run off with Cronus.

Relax, I'm joking.

Maybe…

SO VOTE UNLESS YOU WANT ME TO WRITE ABOUT AN INTIMATE MOMENT BETWEEN TRENT AND ARCHIE! I'M SERIOUS, GUYS!


	7. New Powers and Enemies

**Mel: As far as responses go, I welcome everyone, so a little constructive criticism is good from Citrus-Lime. It would be nice for a change to pair Atlanta with someone else but then there might be a lot of complaints…**

**Christietsang195: Thank you for reading my story! You're in luck because not only am I going to finish it, it's going to be a pretty long story considering I said I wondered what would happen if they used the original characters. So I guess that means I'll have to do all the episodes! Yay! Don't worry, I'm not going to completely keep it the same or make it totally different. It'll have the same plot with a _slightly_ different storyline!**

**Caity party princess: Glad to see SOMEONE likes my idea of Atlanta and Trent trying to go out! I don't think it'll be for awhile though because Atlanta still needs to go out on her "dates" with them, remember? I'll make her consider for a bit who she _really_ likes and have Archie and Trent fight over her a bit. (Without Atlanta knowing, of course). **

**Parker: I feel your pain. I am totally in love with the Archie/Atlanta pairing, but know I'm warming up to Atlanta/Trent. Oh my gosh. I think I've just started a new shipping!**

**Pyro's hoodie: Atlanta running off with Cronus would be funny. Comforts Trent and Archie as they cry. I'm as happy as you are to see Hilda got punched, even though Atlanta got in trouble for it! Lots of people seem to want Atlanta and Trent. Well, we'll have to see…**

Author's Note: So obviously everyone in the school knows that they're being taught by gods and goddesses, so there's no point in keeping the secret chamber of the god's secret, is there? So therefore, when I say there in Hera's office, I mean her _actual_ office, with the tall glass windows, and the couches, and the birds and everything. I'm glad we got this cleared up.

Disclaimer: I do not own Class of the Titans! However, I DO own Palmer and Hilda! Hugs Palmer, slaps Hilda

New Powers and Enemies

"Let me just say that I am completely disgusted in you," Hera said angrily. Atlanta and Hilda were cowering in front of the Goddess's desk, waiting for their sentence.

"However," Hera continued, "I do not have the energy to punish both of you right know. Hilda, you may leave. You stay Atlanta."

"Thank you, Ms. Hera," Hilda got up and walked to the door.

"So, what happened?" Hera asked.

"It was all her, Ms. Hera…" Atlanta started, jumping up.

"I don't want to hear who started it," Hera interrupted, holding her right hand up, "I want to hear what happened."

Atlanta told her the whole story. How Hilda had taunted her this morning, the names she called Archie and Trent, what she said about Atlanta's father….

Atlanta felt her eyes water when she began thinking about her dad…

_It had happened six years ago. William Fielding and his ten year-old daughter Atlanta were driving down the free way when a car full of drunken teenagers hit them head on. William was killed instantly, and Atlanta had to be hospitalized. Both her arms were broken, she had fractured four ribs, and she was in a coma for three weeks. The doctors were afraid that the young girl wasn't going to make it, but she miraculously pulled through. But Atlanta's life hadn't been the same since…._

"Atlanta, dear, are you all right?" Hera asked, concernedly.

Atlanta looked at her, and then realized that she had tears rolling down her cheeks.

"I'm fine," she lied, wiping her face with her wrist.

Hera looked unconvinced for a second, but didn't ask anymore questions.

"Anyways," the goddess said, "I need to get you and the rest of the seven into here to talk more about the Cronus issue ahead of us. Do you think you can round them up?"

"No problem," Atlanta said, happily.

"And, Atlanta?" Hera asked.

"Yeah?" Atlanta said, tugging at her sweat pants drawstring.

"No more fighting, alright?" Hera told her.

"Yes, ma'am," Atlanta giggled.

Atlanta was about to walk out the door when she turned around.

"Um, Ms Hera?" she said.

"Yes?" Hera asked her.

"Well, it might be nothing," Atlanta began, "But when Hilda and I were fighting, something kind of weird happened."

"What sort of thing?" Hera asked, puzzled.

"I…don't know," Atlanta admitted, "I had this feeling coursing through me. I felt angry at Hilda, because of the things she said, but at the same time, I felt happy because I was finally giving her what I thought she deserved, and upset about what she said about… my dad. Then I felt a jolt of energy rushing through me and I blacked out for a second. The next thing I knew, Trent had pulled me off of her."

"Hmm…" Hera murmured.

"It was probably nothing," Atlanta said, feeling embarrassed to be sharing such trivial thoughts with the queen of the gods. She quickly walked out of the room and shut the door behind her.

"Interesting," Hera said to herself, walking over to the window. She looked outside, and saw that the grass and flowers had grown wildly to almost seven feet high. That was strange enough, but what was even stranger is that they had just been trimmed that morning.

"Very interesting indeed," Hera muttered.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

Archie and Trent, as it turned out, weren't that hard to find because they were waiting for Atlanta outside Hera's office.

"Off your butts," she instructed, "Hera wants to see us."

Archie and Trent immediately jumped up and began to ask her questions.

"Are you in a lot of trouble?"

"Have you been suspended?"

"Why were you in here so long?"

"How come _Hilda_ was let out early?"

"Hold on, hold on," Atlanta told them, waving her hands in front of her face, "I don't think I'm in a lot of trouble. I haven't been suspended. I wasn't in there _that_ long. And it's because she smells."

Archie and Trent laughed.

Atlanta smiled at them, took out her phone and dialed Odie's number.

"Y'ello?" Odie answered.

"You have REALLY gotta stop answering the phone like that!" Atlanta sighed.

"Whatever," Odie laughed, "So, what's up?"

"Grab Neil, Herry, and Jay," Atlanta told him, "We've gotta see Hera."

"Will do," Odie responded cheerfully.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

The other four arrived a few minutes later to find that Hera too was now waiting for them outside her office.

"What's the big emergency?" Herry asked.

"There is no emergency, you dork!" Archie exclaimed, "Hera just wants to speak with us about the prophecy."

"Finally!" Neil said, excitement rising in his voice.

"There's actually more than that now," Hera said, her voice quiet.

The teenagers stared at her.

"What do you mean 'more'?" Jay asked, "And why haven't I been told the full story of this prophecy yet? I think I have the right to know!"

"Come in," Hera sighed.

Jay and the others quickly followed her in the large room.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"Do you know who Cronus is Jay?" Hera asked the brown-haired boy.

"Cronus…" Jay muttered, racking his memory, "The god of time? Isn't he your father? Is he the one we're supposed to save the world from? But why is he out of Tartarus prison?"

"It wasn't intentional, believe me," Hera sighed, rubbing her forehead between her fingers, "But the point is, he's escaped, and you seven are the only ones who can stop him."

"But why us?" Jay asked, "There are plenty of other kids at this school who are descended from Greek heroes! Why were we chosen?

"I wondered that myself," Hera told him, "Until today when I was visited by Atlanta."

"What?" Atlanta asked.

"You told me you could feel a strong energy flowing through you when you had your emotions on high," Hera explained, "I looked out the window and saw that the school's plant life had been over-run. I think you have the power to control nature, Atlanta."

"WHAT?" Atlanta shouted.

"I don't understand it either," Hera said, "But if you really do have power over the Earth, that could be part of the key to defeating Cronus."

"Well that's all fine and dandy for Atlanta," Neil whined, "But what about the rest of us?"

"You must have some sort of other power," Hera told him, "Hasn't anything ever happened to you all when you were angry or scared?"

"Come to think of it," Archie recalled, "One time when I was taking a swimming lesson when I was five, the water suddenly just flew out of the pool when I refused to go in."

"Archie? Having control over water?" Odie laughed.

"Irony!" Atlanta sing-songed.

"Sometimes the lights in my house flicker when I get angry with Hercules," Herry thought aloud.

"Then that's it," Hera exclaimed, snapping her fingers, "You all have control over a certain element. THAT'S why the prophecy chose you to defeat Cronus."

"I don't recall having signs in any sort of element when I get angry," Odie admitted.

"Me too," Trent said.

"Me three," Neil and Jay said together.

"You probably haven't developed them yet," Hera told them, "Until then, you'll have to make do with other materials. Jay, Odie, Trent, Neil, follow me to the weapons room. Atlanta, Herry, Archie, you three report to Hermes to see what he thinks of our theory."

"Yes, ma'am," the seven all said together.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"Oooooooo, this looks promising!" Neil exclaimed, picking up what looked like a claw from a candy vending machine.

"It's a stun baton," Ares explained, "It has the power to conjugate enough electricity to knock someone out for several hours."

"Nice," Neil said, twirling it around.

"I think this'll work well for me," Jay said, holding out a small golden sword with a silver blade.

"And these for me," Trent said, taking a pair of nun chucks off the shelf.

"But what about me?" Odie asked, "I'm not exactly the 'fighting' type of guy!"

"No problem, Odie," Hermes said, suddenly fluttering into the room, Archie, Atlanta, and Herry close behind him, "I think this will do just fine." He thrust a large laptop into Odie's arms.

"Oooof!" Odie grunted, almost falling over.

"Satellite surveillance, GPS positioning, wireless internet…you're all set," Hermes told him.

"Thanks!" Odie smiled, opening his new toy.

Atlanta looked over to her other friends, who were playing around with their weapons.

"Okay," she groaned, "What idiot gave Neil a _tazor_?"

She watched as Neil threw the weapon up in the air then caught it at the wrong end, shocking his hand.

"Probably the same one who put Trent in charge of nun chucks," Archie smirked, watching his friend smack himself in the face with the hard metal handle.

"I think you two are just feeling left out," Ares said to them, "Here, catch!"

He threw Atlanta a bracelet with a bow and Archie what looked like a bicycle handle.

"Um…thanks?" Archie said, a bit confused with what he was grasping.

"It's an Hephaestus whip," Ares told him, "Throw it back and belt it forward again."

Archie did so, and was surprised to see that a long rope protruded from the thing in his hand and barely missed Ares.

"Watch it!" Ares growled, "A little closer and you could have cut my leg clear off. That's a dangerous weapon you've got there. IT'S NOT A TOY!"

"Sorry," Archie said, sheepishly.

"But what does mine…" Atlanta was interrupted when she accidentally fired off a laser bolt that ricocheted off the wall and straight at Archie.

"Move!" Atlanta yelled, tackling Archie to the ground before he got burned to a crisp.

"My bad, Ares!" Atlanta waved to the god of war.

"Laser wrist crossbow," Ares said, "Also not something you want to mess around with!"

"What about me?" Herry asked.

"Why would you need a weapon?" Trent asked, "You're one with legs!"

Just then, Hera ran into the room.

'What is it, Ms. Hera?" Jay asked concernedly.

"It's Cronus!" Hera gasped, "He's released the Typhoeus!"

The room was eerily quiet for a few minutes.

"Dang," Neil said.


	8. Chaos 101 Part 1

Author's Note: My first chapter based on an episode! Just as I said, I have changed it around. I didn't add that whole thing with the aura light around the Earth because I just didn't want to. Okay? Hope it hasn't ruined the story for you and you can still read it anyway.

Disclaimer: I do not own Class of the Titans; do I really have to keep saying it?

Chaos 101 Part One

"Oh no, this is bad," Atlanta murmured.

"What? What's bad?" Herry asked, genuinely confused.

"Do you pay, like, any attention in history?" Trent asked.

"The Typhoeus is a big, fire-breathing monster with snakes for legs," Odie explained.

"So this should be a big barrel of laughs," Archie groaned.

"Wait," Jay said, "I signed onto this thing to fight a psycho, homicidal god, not to fight giant mythological Greek monsters!"

"Well obviously you didn't read the fine print," Atlanta told him, and then turning back to Hera, she asked, "Where was the Typhoeus sighted, Hera?"

"Over by the boathouse," Hera said, "But don't go all together. We don't want to issue a huge battle _already_. Just investigate and report back to us."

"Got it," Atlanta said, "Come on, guys." She wrapped her arms around Herry and Jay's shoulders.

"Why me?" Jay asked, his eyes widening in fear.

"Because I think it's time you met Cronus," Atlanta told him, her smile growing bigger.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"Oh my God!" Jay gasped.

They were now at the boathouse, hiding on a huge oil freighter. And sure enough, Cronus HAD got the Typhoeus out of its prison. And it was scarier than anything Jay had ever seen.

"Shut up!" Atlanta whispered, covering his mouth, "Do you WANT Cronus to find us?"

"Yeah, dude," Herry chuckled, "We do _not_ want to have to see Cronus when there are only three of us!"

"Herry!" Atlanta yelled in an undertone, "Will you PLEASE be quiet? He's saying something?"

Herry grinned and looked over to where Cronus was talking to his servants, who were a small group of very large people. **(Author's Note: The Giants)**

"Don't stand to close to the edge!" Cronus snapped to one of the giants.

A large snake slithered out and snapped the giant up before it could step away, scattering blood and guts everywhere.

"Ohhhhh!" Atlanta gasped, burying her head in Jay's shoulder.

"I think I'm going to be sick," Herry groaned, covering his mouth.

Jay staggered, his legs feeling weak with the horror he had just witnessed, and accidentally kicked one of the oil drums over. The large noise the object made when it crashed to the ground echoed across the ship.

"Who's there?" Cronus demanded, twisting his head around.

"Shit," Atlanta whispered, "On three, we run. One…two…"

But her instructions were interrupted when she was lifted high into the air by one of Cronus's giants.

"ATLANTA!" Jay and Herry shouted together.

"Help!" Atlanta screamed.

The two boys instantly ran up to the giant and began trying to free their friend.

"Let her go!" Herry said, pounding on the giants knees.

Herry's strength made the giant's legs collapse almost instantly. The giant lost grasp of Atlanta and she crashed to the ground. A huge _SNAP!_ shot through the air.

"Are you okay?" Jay asked Atlanta, helping her up.

"I don't think so," Atlanta said, grabbing her right arm, "I think I broke my wrist!"

"Oh, how sad," Cronus sighed, stepping out from behind the shadows. He walked over to Atlanta.

"Stay away from her!" Herry snapped.

"Relax, you fool, I'm not going to do anything," Cronus said, grabbing Atlanta's sore wrist and squeezing it with all his might.

"AAAAHHHHH!" Atlanta screamed.

"What are you, crazy?" Jay asked, rushing over to his sobbing friend.

"I think you should have realized that by now, Jay," Cronus chuckled, "But I'll make it up by introducing you three to my new friend!"

He gestured to one of his giants standing by the bars that held the Typhoeus, and his servant quickly threw open the gate, letting the monster fly out.

"We can take it!" Herry growled, raising his fists.

"No we can't," Jay told him, "Not with just the three of us and certainly not with Atlanta's wrist the way it is!"

Herry frowned and slowly lowered his arms.

The Typhoeus noticed the three teenagers and flew down towards them.

"GET OUT OF THE WAY!" Jay yelled.

The three teenagers quickly ran to the side of the boat and jumped off, hitting the water with a splash.

"We're going to need some reinforcements," Jay said as he bobbed to the surface.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

Jay, Odie, Herry, Archie, Trent, and Neil were all sitting in the main foyer of the god's chamber, waiting for news of Atlanta's injury.

"This is all my fault," Archie muttered, "If I'd gone with you guys, Atlanta would never had been hurt."

"No, it's my fault," Herry told him, "I should have gotten Atlanta before I started pounding on the giant!"

"It's nobody's fault," Jay sighed, "It was an accident, alright?"

"Aye, aye captain!" Neil chuckled.

"Everyone listen to our fearless leader!" Odie said, saluting Jay.

"Who says _I'm_ leader?" Jay asked.

"I, for one," Atlanta said, stepping out of Hera's office. She was wearing a large plaster cast over her right arm.

"Atlanta, you're okay!" Trent said, happily.

"For the most part," Atlanta groaned, rubbing her wrist tenderly.

"Her wrist is most certainly broken," Hera sighed, coming out behind Atlanta, "She might not be able to help you for awhile."

"Oh no, I'm going," Atlanta told the goddess "You think I'm gonna let the boys have all the fun?"

Hera smiled at the strawberry-blonde girl.

"Well you can discuss how you're going to handle your fighting skills with Persephone," Hera told her, "She's going to be your mentor."

"Mentor?" Archie asked, puzzled.

"Yes," Hera told him, "You will all need mentors if we are to teach you proper skills in battle and a way to harness your powers. You, Archie, will have Ares as your mentor."

"Great," Archie groaned.

"Odie will have Hephaestus."

"The god of blowing stuff up," Odie sighed, "Awesome."

"Trent will have Hermes."

"Cool," Trent exclaimed.

"Herry will have Hercules."

"I have to live with him at home, and now I have to see him at school?" Herry asked.

"Neil will have Aphrodite."

"More 'bonding'!" Neil said with false enthusiasm.

"And Jay, you will have me as your mentor," Hera concluded.

"Should be fun," Jay told her.

Hera smiled at him.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"Okay, so what are we going to do about Cronus?" Atlanta asked, leaning against the back of the couch in Archie's basement.

"How should _we _know?" Trent asked.

"We are so SCREWED!" Atlanta exclaimed. She glared at Neil, who was signing her cast.

"Is this really the best time to do that?" she yelled.

"Just trying to lighten the mood," Neil muttered, capping his marker.

"Let's think," Jay said, "How was the Typhoeus defeated in ancient times?"

"It was beaten back by lightening bolts and concealed in the cave of Cilicia," Odie answered.

"Oh we better hurry, the lightening bolt warehouse closes in forty-five minutes," Archie said, sarcastically.

"Humor isn't going to help us now," Jay snapped.

"Nothing's going to help us now," Archie told him.

'_This just in,'_ a voice said on the TV, which no one was paying attention to until now, _'A giant creature has been sighted just outside the city limits. It is reported that this monster is gigantic, with long black wings and apparently has two large snakes where it's legs should be. Police caution that you should stay in your homes, and if this creature is posed as a threat, the town will be evacuated immediately.'_

"That's it, I'm going!" Atlanta exclaimed, hopping off the couch.

'You can't!" Archie told her, "You're in no condition to fight right now. And what exactly are you going to do? Fight the Typhoeus single-handedly?"

"Well it's better than sitting around here scratching our heads and playing cards!" Atlanta shouted.

Herry and Odie sheepishly stuck the cards in their hands behind their backs.

"Ugh!" Atlanta groaned.

"I'm going with you," Trent told her.

"Awesome!" Atlanta exclaimed, "Anyone else?"

"I'll come," Herry said.

"Me too," Odie sighed.

"Well, if Odie's going, I'm coming," Archie told the group, "Someone's gotta make sure he doesn't shit his pants!"

"Was that really called for?" Odie asked.

Archie just smirked at him.

"I may as well go also," Neil sighed, "Live life to the fullest and all that."

"How about you Jay?" Atlanta asked, "You coming? We need your help, you know."

Jay was about to say no, that this was total suicide, when he looked up at his new friends, their eyes silently begging him. They needed him. The city needed him. The WORLD needed him.

"Alright. Let's go!" Jay smiled.

_Persephone is Atlanta's mentor partly because she's the goddess of nature, and that's Atlanta's power element, and partly because I wanted a change from Artemis and I didn't really want Athena as Atlanta's mentor. Don't ask me why, I don't know._


	9. Chaos 101 Part 2

Disclaimer: Still don't own Class of the Titans! Me no ownie Phil Collins either!

Chaos 101 Part 2

"Are we there yet?" Neil whined.

"NO!" everyone yelled at him.

"Fine, be that way," Neil frowned, folding his arms over his chest.

Trent had teamed up with Hermes and they had FINALLY been able to pinpoint Cronus and the Typhoeus's location. But now the team was completely lost, even though none of them was going to admit it.

Suddenly, the engine of Herry's truck sputtered and the car stopped completely.

"Oh, shit," Jay said.

"This could be a problem," Odie sighed.

"Well, c'mon, then!" Archie told them, getting out of the truck.

"What?" Trent asked.

"Two of us can stay here and fix the truck, and the rest can go and defeat the Typhoeus," Archie answered, flatly.

"Then we better get started," Atlanta said, jumping beside Archie.

Trent, Herry, and Jay were going with them, Neil and Odie were staying.

"Bring us back a souvenir!" Neil called to his friends as they disappeared into the night.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"So how long have you guys been friends for?" Jay asked, trying to break the awkward silence between the group that had been going on for the last half-hour.

"For as long as I can remember," Atlanta told him, "We went to the same playgroup together, and on the first day, Odie got picked on by a bully, we all stood up for him, and we've been friends ever since."

"But sometimes being friends with Neil isn't necessarily a good thing," Archie said.

"Yeah!" Herry laughed, "Remember that one time in grade eight when the guys were supposed to dress up as girls for Spirit Day, and Neil got totally into it, wearing a min-skirt and high heels and everything, but on the _wrong day_!"

"Oh my God," Archie said, slapping a hand to his forehead, "I recall that vividly."

"Didn't Lance Taylor try to hit on him?" Trent asked.

Jay laughed so hard he couldn't see straight.

"And remember that time we saw 'Tarzan' and the renewal theater last year?" Atlanta asked.

"Yeah, and Trent cried?" Archie remembered.

"I did not!" Trent snapped.

"Yes, you did!" Archie laughed, "I looked over to ask for more popcorn and you had your eyes were watering!"

"I wasn't talking about the movie," Atlanta told them, "I was talking when we camped out on my trampoline after."

"And got totally sick from eating so many Snickers bars!" Herry groaned.

"No, besides that," Atlanta said, "How we just lay out there, looking at the sky and singing "You'll Be in My Heart'."

"Oh yeah," Trent remembered.

There were a few more silent minutes before Atlanta started to sing quietly.

"Come stop your crying, it'll be alright. Just take my hand, hold it tight."

Trent joined in.

"I will protect you from all around you, I will be here, don't you cry."

"For one so small, you seem so strong," Herry whispered, "My arms will hold you keep you safe and warm."

Archie, who openly admitted that he thought the movie was cheesy, started singing as well.

"This bond between us can't be broken. I will be here, don't you cry."

And Jay, who hadn't even seen the movie, but could remember his mom singing the song to him when he was six-years old, began to sing the chorus.

"Cause you'll be in my heart. Yes, you'll be in my heart. From this day on, now and forever more."

The friends didn't realize it, but they all had tears forming in their eyes. All five of them needed a little support in their lives.

Atlanta, who had to witness her father die in that terrible car crash.

Archie, who never even knew his father, he was just a story told to him by his mother. And when she died from cancer, he had to go live with his aunt and uncle.

Herry, who never knew either of his parents, was sent to live with Hercules when his grandmother's heart finally gave out.

Trent, who tried so hard to make his grandfather proud, but felt inside like he was never going to be good enough for him.

And Jay. After his mother passed away, his father left for no reason. And he had to live with his uncle, who never listened to his hopes, his dreams. He only wanted what was best for _him_.

Even Neil and Odie, who were waiting back in the car with news of a victory, also no longer had parents. All they had now were their friends.

"We can do it, you guys," Atlanta sobbed, her tears flowing openly now, "We have too."

She hooked her fingers through Archie and Trent's and grasped their hands tight.

_UGH! Short chapter, I know! But I wanted to have a big emotional chapter between the team, and I couldn't make it very long. More action and fighting next chapter, I promise!_


	10. Chaos 101 Part 3

**Joybella: I'm glad that you like the new chapters as well as my Atlanta/Trent relationship idea. AxA forever, indeed. As for wanting to learn what Neil's element will be… you and me both, my friend. You and me both.**

**Pyro's hoodie: Due to your request, this chapter will have plenty 'o' action, along with the use of some of Atlanta and Jay's powers! (There will be more digging into the rest of the boys' abilities in future chapters.)**

**Caity party princess: I was afraid that everyone would think my last chapter was too cheesy and/or too typical so thank you for your positive comment! Neil's end comment also made me laugh because it reminded me so much of what one of my guy friends would say! You will be happy with me because I am trying to update every day or every other day! Tune in for more episodes! And for Atlanta's "dates!"**

Chaos 101 Part 3

An hour later, the small group had approached a large canyon with a river down below. And sure enough, Cronus was on the other side, his giants standing alongside him and the Typhoeus hovering close above.

Fortunately the god had not seen the heroes yet, which they could use for their advantage.

"Listen," Jay whispered, "Cronus is saying something."

Cronus was looking up at the Typhoeus, an angry expression on his face.

"This was not to our agreement," he barked, "You're not supposed to have been seen yet! You were to find the seven, destroy them, and report back to me. You have done none of that yet, so I can not allow you permission to feed on other humans yet!"

The Typhoeus growled and sank to the ground.

Suddenly, the creature looked up and began to sniff the air.

"What is it now?" Cronus asked, annoyance ringing in his voice.

"Smell blood," the Typhoeus grunted, "Humans nearby."

"That's impossible," Cronus snapped, "There isn't another house for miles. Unless…"

He looked over to where Jay and the others were hidden in the trees.

"Check over there," he instructed the Typhoeus.

The monster, instead, blew a huge gust of fire, setting the trees aflame.

"Not what I had in mind, but that works as well," Cronus said.

Fortunately, the team was able to get out in time before they too were burned to ashes.

"Aaaaah, children, so nice to see you again!" Cronus said, cheerfully, "It's so depressing that I need to have my Typhoeus destroy you!"

"I'd like to see you try!" Atlanta shouted.

Cronus stared up at his monster.

"What are you waiting for?" Cronus yelled, "You're hungry, are you not? Eat them!"

The Typhoeus smiled, showing off it's pointed, yellow teeth and flew towards the team.

"I think NOW would be a good time to run!" Herry said.

The friends all ran off in different directions.

"Nature…powers…might…be…in…handy…now!" Archie puffed to Atlanta, who was running alongside him.

"I'll try," she told him, slowing down.

'_Concentrate,_' she thought, '_Harness your emotions._'

Nothing was happening.

"Man!" Atlanta shouted, kicking the ground. She didn't realize that the Typhoeus was heading right at her.

"ATLANTA! WATCH OUT!" Trent yelled, running over to his friend and getting her out of the way of the flying creature just in time. The two both rolled to the ground, their faces inches apart.

"Thanks," Atlanta breathed.

"No problem," Trent muttered, feeling very awkward.

The Typhoeus was now set on Archie and Herry, his arms close enough to reach out and grab them. Unfavorably, that's exactly what it did.

"NO!" Atlanta cried. The Typhoeus was now lowering her Archie into its mouth.

Atlanta could feel the same burst of sadness and fury coursing through her when she was fighting Helen. She closed her eyes and screamed.

And then, she was rising into the air, shots of green light swirling around her. Tall vines with thick thorns were now growing up from the dirt and encircling the Typhoeus, who yelped in pain and let go of Archie and Herry.

Atlanta fell back and clamped her hands over her hair

"Ooooooooh, my head!" she groaned. That attack had completely worn her out.

She lay onto the ground and closed her eyes….

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"What's wrong with Atlanta?" Archie asked Herry, climbing up after they had hit the ground.

"I don't know," Herry said. They both walked over to their unconscious friend.

"Atlanta?" Herry asked, shaking the small girl.

"Mmmmmmm?" Atlanta muttered, "I'm fine guys, don't worry about me!" She waved the boys away.

'What are we going to do with you, Lan?" Archie whispered, hoisting her up on his back. The purple-haired boy walked over beside a still in-tact tree and laid Atlanta under it.

"Look after her;" he instructed Herry, "I'm going to destroy this thing once and for all."

Herry nodded and watched Archie walk over to Jay and Trent.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"We need to fall back!" Jay yelled, as he swiped at the Typhoeus with his sword as it swooped just a few feet above their heads.

"Why?" Trent asked, "We can take it!"

"No, we can't," Jay told him, "Not by ourselves. We need the seven of us if we have any chance of defeating the Typhoeus at all!"

Archie and Trent hung their heads down, knowing fully well that Jay was right.

"But HOW are we going to get back?" questioned Archie, "Our only means of transportation is at least six miles away!"

"We'll think of something," Jay said, scratching his head.

Luckily, they didn't need to come up with a plan, Herry's truck rolled up a few seconds later.

"Good news!" Odie called as he rolled down the window, "We fixed it!"

"Awesome!" Jay said, as he, Archie, Trent, and Herry (who was carrying a still-knocked out Atlanta) clambered into the back of the car, "NOW DRIVE!"

Odie stepped on the gas and the truck sped off, the Typhoeus in hot pursuit.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"Drive, Odie, drive!" Neil shouted as he saw the monster coming up behind them.

"I'll try to throw him off!" Odie yelled, turning off the road.

"Watch it!" Herry screamed, "Don't wreck my truck!"

"It's still after us!" Neil screeched.

"What are we doing?" Atlanta asked, sitting up from the back of the truck.

"Atlanta!" Trent exclaimed, "You're awake!"

"When was I not?" Atlanta said, puzzled.

"She doesn't remember," Archie murmured.

"That big unleash of her powers must have shortened her memory," Jay said.

"What are you talking about?" Odie asked, his eyes concentrated on the cliff they were driving right towards, "What big unleash of Atlanta's powers?"

"Oh man, we miss everything!" Neil whined.

Just as he said that, the Typhoeus whipped its large hand at the truck, almost toppling the car over.

"Shit!" Herry swore.

"Stop the car," Jay instructed.

"Are you freaking crazy?" Odie shouted.

"Maybe," Jay said, "But I've got a plan!"

"Whatever," Odie muttered, pressing the break.

Jay and the team piled out of the truck.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"That's a long way down," Trent whistled, looking down the side of the cliff.

"Archie hand me your whip," Jay told the purple-haired boy.

"Why?" Archie asked.

"Just do it!" Jay commanded.

Archie handed him his weapon and Jay immediately began to pull the rope part out of the handle.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Archie asked angrily, "You're going to break it!"

"Chill," Jay said, "Trent take the end of the rope and run as far as you can."

"Um, Jay," Atlanta said, "I hate to interrupt, but the Typhoeus is headed right towards us!"

"That's where you and Archie come in," Jay said, "Try to distract it until Trent has pulled the rope to the end!"

"You sure you know what you're doing?" Archie asked.

"Positive," Jay said, "Now get that thing away from here!"

"Nice knowing you, Arch," Atlanta said, starting to run.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"Surprisingly, this isn't how I imagined spending my Saturday night!" Archie wheezed as he and Atlanta continued to draw the Typhoeus's attention from their friends.

"Get used to it," Atlanta told him.

Back near the cliff, Trent was almost to the end of Archie's whip's rope.

"Dang," he muttered, "How can so much rope be shoved into a small place?"

At long last, he reached the end, and stuck his thumb up to signal Jay that they were done.

"Archie! Atlanta!" Jay yelled, "Bring it over here now!"

"We're all gonna die," Archie muttered.

"Shut up and run!" Atlanta shouted, turning towards the cliff, Archie and the Typhoeus close behind.

"Herry, when I give the signal, hit the ground near the edge as hard as you can," Jay instructed his muscular friend.

"If you say so," Herry said, poising his fist above the dirt.

The Typhoeus was coming closer now.

Archie and Atlanta managed to jump over the whip, but the monster wasn't so lucky. One of its snakes got tangled up and it belted over the side of the cliff, hitting the bottom hard.

"NOW, HERRY!" Jay shouted.

Herry grunted and punched the earth, causing a landslide of rocks to go tumbling into the canyon and bury the Typhoeus.

"Is it… dead?" Neil asked.

They all peered over the edge. The only part of the Typhoeus visible beneath the rubble was its arm, which lay limp against the soil.

"I think I'm going to faint," Odie said, falling back onto the ground.

"We did it," Jay muttered, "We killed the Typhoeus."

All of a sudden, he heard several angry and frightened shouts coming from his teammates. Jay spun around to find each of Cronus's giants holding each one his friends around the waist tightly.

'Well done Jay," Cronus smiled, appearing out of nowhere, "But now since that the Typhoeus didn't destroy you and your friends, I guess I'll have to do the job myself."

He snapped his fingers, and each of the giants began squeezing the others tighter.

"Let them go, Cronus," Jay said, his eyes narrowed angrily.

"Um…. no," Cronus laughed. The giants were grasping his friends tighter; the teenagers' faces growing blue from the lack of air.

"LET THEM GO!" Jay shouted. The next thing he knew, orange flames began speeding around his body and he blacked out.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

Jay sat up quickly. He lying in a large bed inside a room filled with various Greek statues and pottery. The one modern exception was a white iMac on a large mahogany table. His friends were all asleep on hard wooden chairs circled around the bed.

"Guys?" he whispered, "Guys? Wake up!"

Each of his teammates individually began to stir, and their eyes all popped open.

"He's awake!" Herry said happily.

"Where am I?" Jay asked, rubbing his eyes.

"Odie's room," Neil informed him, snapping open his mirror and patting down his messed-up hair.

"Welcome to the Underworld, buddy!" Odie exclaimed.

"Jay, you were awesome!" Atlanta said, running over to him and throwing her arms around his neck.

"I don't remember much…" Jay admitted.

"It was so awesome," Trent said, "You just got covered in fire all of a sudden, we thought Cronus had done it to you, but then you held out your hands and blasted the giants in the face! After that, Cronus and the giants just disappeared into some portal!"

"Fire powers," Archie commented, "Pretty cool!"

There was a knock on the door, and in walked Hera, Chiron, Persephone, and another person with purple skin and hair.

"Thank goodness you're all right!" Hera said to Jay.

"Nice job, Jay," Chiron said, "Very well done!"

"You defeated the Typhoeus," Persephone smiled, "We're so proud of you." She walked over to Odie and ruffled his hair, making the small boy turn bright red.

"It was all Jay," Atlanta told her, "We would all be dead if it wasn't for him!"

"No, it was all of us," Jay said.

"Wonderful," the purple man exclaimed in a high-pitched voice, making Jay snort back a laugh.

"Oh, how rude of me, Jay," Persephone apologized, "This is my husband, Hades."

Jay's eyes widened. _This_ was Hades? The terrifying god of the Underworld?

'Guess you can't judge a book by its cover," Jay thought.

"If you're up for it, Jay, Hades has gracefully made pancakes," Hera told the tuckered-out boy.

"Huh? What time is it?" Jay asked.

"Eight AM," Trent told him, checking his watch, "You were out for awhile."

"C'mon," Atlanta exclaimed, pulling Jay out of the bed, "Hades makes the BEST pancakes!"

'I've got a feeling I'm going to like it here,' Jay thought, as the group walked out of Odie's bedroom and headed towards the kitchen.


	11. Disaster Strikes

**Hockeygrl1195:** **I hope Atlanta ends up with Archie too, but I still feel sorry for Trent. I'm gonna create an awesome girlfriend for him later in the series.**

**Pyro's hoodie: I was thinking of putting Trent's power as fire, but then I remembered in most shows if the characters have a certain power element, the leader usually has fire, so I was just jumping on the bandwagon, I guess.**

**Caity party princess: Yay! My loyal reviewer! (Other than Pyro's hoodie) Your wish has come, here is the next chapter!**

Disclaimer: I don't own Class of the Titans; please don't make me say it anymore.

Disaster Strikes

"Honey, Archie's here!" Atlanta's mother called up the stairs to her daughter.

"One second!" Atlanta yelled back. She was in the bathroom, applying gloss to her lips. She put the container down and looked at herself in the mirror.

She had on a frilly lavender camisole, and a pair of flared jeans that she had drawn on with gel pens during a very boring algebra class, but were still nice nonetheless.

Atlanta was wondering why she had dressed up so nice. It was just Archie, after all. The guy who had burping contests with Herry, the one who sang in an irritatingly high voice to Green Day. The one who waltzed around his house in Spongebob Squarepants boxers for Christ's sake! He was just a friend. Her best friend.

Or was he? Her mind wandered back to when Archie stood up for her with Helen. How her stomach tingled when she saw the intensity in his eyes. And then when she hugged him, it just felt right somehow.

"I don't like him," Atlanta said to herself.

"Don't like who?" Archie asked, standing in the doorway.

Atlanta let out a yelp and tripped on the toilet, falling into the bathtub.

"Are you okay?" Archie laughed, helping her up.

"Oh yeah," Atlanta told him, "I do that all the time."

Archie chuckled and looked her up and down.

"You look nice," he concluded.

"Thanks," she smiled, "You do too."

Archie was wearing a black muscle shirt, a pair of dark-wash jeans, and a light blue plaid shirt that he had left un-buttoned. He had combed his hair down, and he smelled suspiciously like Tag body spray.

"Let's go," Atlanta said, pulling him out of the bathroom.

When they walked down the stairs, Atlanta saw that her whole family was down there waiting for them.

"You both look so cute!" Atlanta's mother exclaimed, clasping her hands together, "David, take a picture!"

David was Atlanta's step-father. He had married her mother two years after Atlanta's father had died, which, in Atlanta's opinion, was too soon. They had birthed two children together, two year old Bailey and 9 month old Hayden.

"Wanna go too!" Bailey shrieked, running up to Archie.

"Maybe next time, okay kiddo?" he asked, ruffling her blonde curls.

"Kay," Bailey smiled, hugging Archie's legs.

Hayden crawled over to Atlanta and clutched her feet.

Atlanta chuckled and picked him up.

Hayden rested his head against Atlanta's chest and began drooling on her shirt.

"Eeeww, Hayden!" Atlanta groaned, placing the baby back on the ground.

Hayden smiled, showing off an almost-toothless smile, and laughed his little baby laugh.

"Come on you two," Atlanta's mom said, "Get together so we can take a picture!"

"Please, Mom, we're just going to a movie!" Atlanta exclaimed, "It's not even a real date!"

Upon hearing that, Archie's face fell.

"Alright," Atlanta's mom pouted, "Be back by twelve, okay sweetie?"

"Okay," Atlanta said, "C'mon, Arch."

Archie grinned at her and followed her out the door.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

Archie walked Atlanta over to his motorcycle and tossed her a helmet, which she immediately slid over her head.

Archie then got on the bike and Atlanta slid on after him and placed her arms around his waist, careful not to bump her broken wrist.

Archie turned on the engine and the motorcycle zoomed down the street.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"How about that part where the monster ripped that guy's lung out and ate it?" Archie recalled.

"Ugh, don't remind me," Atlanta groaned.

The movie was over, and the two friends were sitting in McBurgerton's, slurping down chocolate milkshakes. They were silent for a minute, not being able to think of anything to say. Atlanta looked down at her cast, reading each of the notes her friends wrote on it.

Hey Atlanta, Hope your wrist gets

better so I can keep kicking your

ass arm wrestling!

Herry

Atlanta! Please stop hurting yourself!  
I don't think your family can handle any

more medical bills! Remember when you

broke our leg falling out of the tree in third grade?

Odie

Remember, Lan. Scars won't look

pretty when you're trying to impress!

Neil

Nice job, Atlanta! Five broken limbs in the

past three years and counting!

Trent

Hope you get better soon!

(Jeez I am lame!)

Jay

Hey, thanks for saving my  
butt today! It's awesome to know

someone as cool as you! Just remember

that I've got your back too, okay?

Arch

"So who were talking about in the bathroom?" Archie asked, snapping Atlanta from her thoughts.

"Beg pardon?" she questioned.

"At your house," Archie told her, "You said, and I quote, 'I don't like him.' End quote."

"Oh, it was…." Atlanta stammered, racking her brain for an excuse to tell Archie, "Peter from _City Chicks_. I hate his character, he's too stuck up. Doesn't belong with Caroline."

Archie raised his eyebrows at her. "Whatever," he chuckled.

Atlanta grinned and took a large swig of her milkshake.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"See you tomorrow," Archie called from his motorcycle.

Atlanta waved to him from her front porch, then she went inside the house and ran to her room. She immediately turned on her computer and logged onto her town's instant message website. Atlanta scrolled down her buddy list to check who was online.

**Jalaxander204** (Jay)- Offline

**Hydrasmasher** (Herry)- Offline

**Green-Goggles517** (Odie)- Offline

**CommanderofSlander** (Archie)- Offline

**2Sexy4MyShirt** (Neil)- Offline

**High-off-life362** (Trent)- Online

Atlanta immediately clicked Trent's screen name when she saw he was online and sent him a message.

**LannyF261:** Hey!

**High-off-life39: **Hey, what's up?

**LannyF261:** Nothing. You?

**High-off-life39:** Homework.

**LannyF261:** On a Friday?

**High-off-life39:** We're juniors now, Lan. Portfolio year, remember?

**LannyF261:** Thanks for reminding me.

**High-off-life39:** Ha ha!

**LannyF261:** Ugh! You suck!

**High-off-life39:** Sorry.

**LannyF261:** LOL. Jking.

**High-off-life39:** Okay, moving on…

**LannyF261:** Ha ha! So what are you doing besides homework?

**High-off-life39:** Zoning out to my iPod.

**LannyF261:** Listening to Jessica Simpson, are you?

**High-off-life39:** You're hilarious. Try The Strokes.

**LannyF261:** Nice.

**High-off-life39:** What's wrong with The Strokes?

**LannyF261:** Nothing…nothing!

All of a sudden, Atlanta started to feel really nauseous.

**LannyF261:** I g2g. Think I need to go to bed.

**High-off-life39:** K. C you tomorrow.

**LannyF261:** Bye

Atlanta signed off and got changed out of her clothes. Her stomach still felt sick, so she walked to the bathroom, only wearing her underwear, and got some Tums. After she chewed a couple of the colorful pills, she could feel her dinner rising up her throat. She ran over to the toilet and emptied the contents of her stomach.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

Atlanta woke up the next morning, feeling that if she moved she would barf again. She looked over at her clock. 5:30 PM.

'Shit!' she thought, 'I slept all day!'

"MOM!" Atlanta called, "MOM! CAN YOU COME HERE?"

Atlanta's mother bolted up the stairs and into her daughter's room.

"You're finally awake!" she exclaimed, feeling her daughter's forehead, "Oh, honey! You're burning up!"

Atlanta nodded and pulled her blankets over her head.

"Oh, Trent called," her mother said, "He wanted to ask what time you were coming over, but I told him you were sick, and he should come over here instead."

Atlanta immediately threw the covers off her face.

"What?" she asked.

Her mother nodded. "David and I are taking your brother and sister to visit your grandmother for the night, so it won't be too noisy around here. Get some rest until then, okay dear?"

Her mother got up and left the room. Atlanta groaned and fell back onto her pillow. The sudden moment made her feel very sick, and she ran to the bathroom.

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"Atlanta? Atlanta?" a voice whispered in her ear.

"Huh?" Atlanta murmured, sitting up. Trent was sitting beside her bed.

"Oh, hey," she smiled.

"Hi," he smiled back, "It's really crappy that you're so sick. I brought over some movies; think you're up to watching them?"

"Cool," Atlanta smiled, "What movies did you bring?"

"Jeepers Creepers, Meet the Fockers, and Pirates of the Caribbean," Trent told her.

"So basically, all my favorites?" Atlanta asked.

"Basically," Trent laughed, "Come on, I'll help you downstairs."

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Trent leaded Atlanta into her family area. It was a large room with a red leather couch, loveseat, and two easy chairs. The big screen TV was pushed against one wall.

"What do you wanna watch first?" Trent asked, laying Atlanta down on the couch.

"Can we watch the scary one first?" she begged.

Trent swallowed down a gulp and nodded. He didn't like horror movies that much.

"Jeepers Creepers it is," he said, popping the movie into Atlanta's DVD player.

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About twenty-five minutes into the movie, Atlanta had fallen asleep, her head rested on Trent's lap. Trent, scared as he was, was still watching the movie, but when the bodies were discovered in the pit; Trent gasped and stood up, causing Atlanta to tumble off the couch.

"What's happening?" Atlanta asked, scratching her head, "Is the movie over?

"No," Trent said, "I just…"

"Freaked out?" Atlanta giggled, "We don't have to watch this movie you know, Trent. Pop in Meet the Fockers."

"Alright," Trent grinned, grateful he didn't have to watch the scary movie anymore.

"You feeling any better?" he asked Atlanta, who had settled herself on the couch again.

"Not really," she frowned.

"Well, I brought some things for you," Trent told her, disappearing into the kitchen. When he came back into the room, his arms were laden with various items, which he immediately dispensed onto the coffee table. Atlanta leaned over to see what was in the stash.

There was a box of Reese's Pieces, a can of chicken soup, a bottle of ginger ale, and an issue of _Cosmo Girl!_

"Everything you need when you're sick!" Trent commented.

Atlanta burst out in hysterical laughter.

'What?" Trent asked, a frown forming on his face.

"I can't believe you went to the drug store and bought _Cosmo Girl!_" Atlanta giggled, burying her face in her pillow.

"Shut up!" Trent laughed, sitting on the couch. Atlanta laid her head on his lap again.

"You make a good pillow," Atlanta yawned, closing her eyes. It wasn't long before she fell asleep again.

"Night, Lan," Trent whispered, feeling a bit tired himself…..

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Trent woke up what seemed like eons later, but his watch said it was only eleven. He and Atlanta had only fallen asleep for a couple of hours.

Speaking of Atlanta, where was she? Trent realized that he was staring up at the ceiling and looked down to where his friend was sleeping. His eyes widened at what he saw.

Atlanta had kicked off the blankets that had been wrapped around her body, and the only thing she had on was a strapless black bra and a pair of lacey blue underwear.

'Oh, God,' Trent thought, 'Oh, God. Oh, God. Oh, God. What am I going to do?"

His first idea was to put the blankets back on his friend, and pretended that this had never happened. But then Atlanta sat up in her sleep and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Oh shit," he thought, "Shit, shit, shit, shit, and shit!"

It got worse when Atlanta's eyes fluttered open.

"Huh?" she asked, looking up at Trent, "What am I doing?"

Atlanta then proceeded to look down at what she was wearing, or what she WASN'T wearing.

"What are _you_ doing!" she shrieked, pulling the blankets up over her partially naked body. There were tears bubbling in her eyes.

"Atlanta, it's not what it looks like…" Trent began.

"Oh, I think it's exactly what it looks like!" Atlanta cried. Her tears were flowing freely now, "Get out of my house, Trent."

"Atlanta…" Trent began.

"Now!" Atlanta screamed, and then she got off the couch and ran up to her room, leaving Trent to wallow in his misery.


	12. Man's Worst Enemy Part 1

**Joybella: Which sweet moment? There were kinda a lot…. Thanks for commenting!**

**Parker: Whoa… eager little reviewer, aren't you? I am planning to hook Palmer up with Jay, duh. LOL. No more sugar for you, alright?**

**Hockeygrl195: I do update fast, don't I? I actually write this story when I'm bored, and unfortunately I'm bored a lot. I wasn't originally trying to start a sympathy gather for Trent, but it kinda turned out that way, didn't it? Dang. Poor Trent…**

**Pyro's hoodie: Jeepers Creepers is very scary. I almost peed my pants, honestly. Trent IS a naughty boy, isn't he? Actually, that scene was inspired by a part in the third Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants book. **

Disclaimer: Me no owney yetty so pleasey stoppy asky.

Man's Worst Enemy Part 1

The next day, a sunny Sunday afternoon, Herry was in his backyard playing fetch with his dog, Pepe. The dog had originally belonged to his grandmother, but after she had passed away, Herry and Pepe had both moved in with Hercules.

"Awesome, Pepe!" Herry cheered as the dog leaped in the air and caught the stick between its teeth.

Pepe barked happily and began to jump up and down.

"Wanna try again?" Herry asked, making a gesture to throw the stick.

But Pepe didn't usually start to run, as he usually did. Instead, the dog turned around and started to growl.

"Pepe?" Herry said, puzzled, "What's wrong?"

The small dog began to run very fast and disappeared into the woods behind Herry's house.

"Pepe!" Herry called, "Come back, boy!"

Five minutes later, there was still no sign of the dog, so Herry started to search for him.

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An hour later, Pepe still couldn't be found. Herry let out a big sigh and called Odie.

"Hello?" Odie answered.

"Odie, it's Herry," Herry said, "Pepe's gone."

"Gone?" Odie asked, "Gone where?"

"I don't know!" Herry said, exasperated, "If I knew where, don't you think I would have found him?"

"Okay, chill out man," Odie said, "I'll come over and we put up lost dog posters, okay?"

"Okay," Herry muttered, "Thanks."

"No problem," Odie said, "See you later."

"Bye," Herry said. He closed the phone and walked up to his house.

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The next morning at school, Atlanta's head was buzzing with different thoughts. _Why had Trent been holding her like that on Saturday? Did he throw off her blankets deliberately to see her in her underwear? But I thought he was my friend! Maybe Hilda was right. Maybe girls and boys can't be friends. But Trent had been her friend for thirteen years! Had it been a lie all this time? But that was impossible, wasn't it?_

Thinking hurt sometimes.

"Atlanta!" a voice yelled. Atlanta whirled around. It was Trent, running after her.

"Go away, Trent," Atlanta said, feeling her eyes watering.

"Please, let me explain…" Trent began.

"There's nothing to explain," Atlanta told him, walking away

"What's eating her?" Neil asked, coming up from behind Trent. Odie was with him.

"Nothing," Trent said.

"Nothing?" Odie asked, raising an eyebrow.

Trent let out a sigh. Neil and Odie were two of his best friends. He knew he couldn't hide anything from them.

"Okay, this is what happened," Trent started, "Atlanta was sick on Saturday so I came over, and while we were watching a movie, we both fell asleep. When I woke up, Atlanta had kicked the blankets off herself, and all she was wearing was her underwear. So I freaked out and tried to put them back on, but then she started to wrap her arms around my neck. Then she woke up and thought I took the blankets off and put her arms around me myself, so she started to scream and now she won't even talk to me!"

"Dude," Neil said.

"Maybe if you just explain…" Odie told Trent.

"Don't you think I tried that?" Trent snapped, "She doesn't listen!"

"Trent, it's okay," Neil said.

"No, it's not okay!" Trent shouted, making the two boys jump, "Don't you get it? It's not okay!"

Trent stomped off, his friends watching him with worry.

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Atlanta walked into the music room and slammed the door. If there was one thing that always calmed her down, it was playing her guitar.

But where was it? She remembered taking it into the car when her mother dropped her off at the bus stop…

That's where it was, in her mom's car.

Dang.

Atlanta walked along the shelves, looking at the various instruments, and stopping at a brass golden thing that was similar to a harp. Should be easy to play….

She took it down from the shelf and began to stroke the strings gently.

It was very easy to play. The strings slid off her fingers gently, making a soft, tinkling sound. Atlanta got so into it that she didn't realize that someone else had entered the room.

After playing a few songs on the instrument, Atlanta heard a sighing noise behind her. Whirling around, she realized that it was Apollo, the school band teacher.

"That was luv-fe-ly," he told her, "I did not know you could play the lyre, Atlanta!"

"The lyre?" Atlanta asked, confusedly, "Oh, this thing? Not really, I just…"

"Nonsense," Apollo insisted, "That was bootiful. I eensist that you play for my moosic class next week."

"Um… okay?" Atlanta answered.

"Wonderful!" Apollo exclaimed, "I vill see you dan!"

As Apollo left the room, Atlanta's cell rang. She slid the small, red phone out of its mesh pocket and opened it.

"Hello?" she answered.

"Atlanta, it's Jay," the voice on the other end said.

"Oh, hey," she said, "What's up?"

"Dunno yet," Jay said, "Persephone wants to see us."

"Persephone?" Atlanta asked, a little bit confused, "What for?"

"I don't know," Jay admitted, "But it sounded kind of urgent."

"Okay, see you," Atlanta said.

"Bye," Jay said.

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As soon as Jay hung up his phone, he trotted down the hall to Persephone's solarium. He was interrupted, however, when a skinny person with blonde hair hit him head on, knocking them both to the ground.

"Shit," the person muttered," Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Jay answered. When he looked up, he realized that it was Palmer. His heart began to beat faster.

She was wearing a swishy white mini-skirt over a black leotard. Pink toe shoes were on her feet and her hair was in a loose, wavy bun.

"Oh, hey!" she said when she saw that it was Jay she had crashed into.

"Hey," Jay grinned. He stood up and offered his hand to her.

"Thanks," she said, taking it, "Sorry about hitting you. My mind's just a complete buzz. I just came from gym and…"

"It's fine," Jay chuckled. Palmer smiled, her beautiful blue eyes lighting up.

Jay looked Palmer up and down before asking, "Were you dancing in gym or something?"

"You're perceptive, aren't you?" Palmer asked. Jay blushed.

"I was," Palmer answered, demonstrating by twirling in a perfect circle. Jay laughed and clapped his hands.

"Listen, I've got to go," Jay told her, "But… I'll catch you later or something, okay?"

"Alright," Palmer chuckled, placing a hand on her thin hips.

"Um, so catch you later?" Jay asked.

"Catch you later," Palmer echoed, smiling again.

Jay waved and walked down the hall to his destination.

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Odie's voice asking him, "Where WERE you?" was the first thing Jay heard when he entered Persephone's office.

The others were obviously waiting what _they_ thought was too long. Neil was combing his hair, Herry was slurping down a can of Red Bull, Atlanta and Archie were both plugged in to different iPod's, Odie was checking something on his laptop, and Trent was looking distractedly out the window. Persephone, too, was looking a tad pissed. Her arms were folded over her chest and she was stamping her foot impatiently.

"Sorry!" Jay told his friends, "I ran into someone, and…"

"Save it," Atlanta told him, holding up her hand. She turned to Persephone. "NOW can you tell us what's wrong, Persephone?"

Persephone nodded and took a book off a high shelf. She placed it on the high table in front of her and opened it. As soon as the pages felt the air, an image of a large black dog with three horned skulls for heads and a long, orange snake for a tail flew into the air.

"Cerberus?" Odie asked, "What's so unusual about that?"

"Unless you count a giant three-headed dog as something you see everyday, then nothing," Jay answered sarcastically.

"Well, actually…" Odie began.

Persephone interrupted him. "Something IS wrong," she told the team, "Cerberus is missing!"

"Are you sure he didn't just escape into the Hall of Judgment again?" Odie asked.

"King Midas is going to be _pissed_!" Herry laughed.

Persephone shook her head.

"Hades has searched everywhere," she said, "But Cerberus is nowhere to be found."

"Hey, isn't your dog lost too, Herry?" Archie asked.

Herry nodded. "Do you think there's a connection?"

"It IS possible," Persephone said, "But we need to find Cerberus as fast as we can. There's no telling what he could unleash on mankind."

Neil burst out laughing. "Unleashed! That's a good one!"

The others groaned.

"We'll start looking for Cerberus immediately, Miss Persephone," Jay told the goddess.

Persephone smiled at him.

"But where do we start looking?" Atlanta asked.

"If _I_ was a dog, _I'd_ go hiding into the forest," Neil said.

"May I ask why?" Archie questioned.

"Think about it," Neil said, "All those fresh, healthy, never been peed on trees!"

"It's the best bet we've got," Jay said. The others nodded and followed him out of the solarium.

"Be careful!" Persephone called. But the team had already left.


	13. Who Let the Dogs Out?

**Thiaf: Thank you for your positive comment, I'm glad you're taking enjoyment in my story and I'll be sure to update soon!**

**Citrus-Lime: Can you pretty please drop the Theresa subject? I don't have anything against her, I swear. If you like Theresa so much, than write a story with her in it, just don't please be angry because she's not in mine.**

**Caity party princess: Neil is a funny one, isn't he? Makes me laugh, anyway. **

**Chatty Pants: Don't sweat if you're too lazy to log in, I don't feel like it most of the time myself. I like you're idea. We'll just have to wait and see with Trent, shall we?**

Author's Note: Long awaited update! Sorry guys, I've just been so busy over the past two weeks. What with homework, field hockey, writer's block… ah whatever. Be happy I wrote a new chapter. More soon!

Just to tell you, I'm getting kind of tired of naming practically all my chapter's "Chaos Part 3" etc… so I've decided to just stop doing that. Some chapters might be cheesy (like the one below), but at least my headache will be gone.

Who Let the Dogs Out?

"Just wait one minute, guys," Herry told his friends. "I need to pull over for a sec."

The team was supposed to be going into the woods to look for Cerberus. But obviously, Herry had other ideas. They had pulled up at the New Olympia animal shelter.

"Um, dude," Neil said, "If anyone DID find Cerberus, I think they'd have to spend their time running in fear then to turn him into the shelter."

"I'm just seeing if Pepe's here," Herry said, "We'll be in and out, I promise."

The others were hesitant, but Herry finally convinced them to go in.

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"I don't see him anywhere, Herry," Atlanta said as they strolled along various cages.

They had been looking for ten minutes, and Pepe was nowhere to be found.

"Fine," Herry sighed, walking towards the exit.

As the seven friends walked out the door into the office, they noticed a balding man with a protruding beer belly wheeling in a cage carrying… Pepe!

"Hey, that's my dog!" Herry said to the man, running up to him.

"I'm sorry, son," the man told him, "This dog has been viewed attacking several people. I'm afraid you can't take him."

"What?" Herry asked with disbelief. Pepe was a sweet, affectionate dog who would never hurt a fly.

Herry looked into the cage and saw Pepe balled up in a corner. The dog's eyes were angry and his teeth were bared.

"Pepe?" Herry whispered.

Pepe jumped up and immediately began barking loudly at his master. The man shot Herry a look of apology and wheeled Pepe into a room marked, "DANGEROUS ANIMALS"

"They can't do this!" Herry exclaimed, "They can't put Pepe down! It's unfair! We have to save him!"

"But, how?" Trent asked.

"Yeah, they aren't exactly going to let us waltz in and take him," Odie complained.

Atlanta looked over at the door and noticed that the man had left the room holding Pepe. Now the only people in the shelter were her, her friends, and a teenage boy with bad acne and a high collared shirt sitting behind a desk and wearing an apron.

"Hmmmm," she muttered.

Suddenly, Atlanta hatched a plan. She took off her white sweatshirt, revealing an emerald green tank top, slid her dark wash jeans down so they rested just above her hips, and loosened her hair out of its ponytail and let it fall freely down her upper back. She then took a pink gloss out of her pocket and slid it across her lips.

"Watch the master at work, boys," she smiled, sliding up to the pimple-faced teenage boy.

"Hi," she greeted flirtatiously, plopping herself up onto the desk.

"H-hi," the boy stuttered.

"Hey… I've lost my dog, and I'm so worried," Atlanta told the boy, "Has someone turned in a puppy that's half Mastiff, half Chihuahua?"

"What the hell?" Archie muttered, "That's impossible!"

"That's brilliant," Jay chuckled.

"Um, I don't think so," the boy said, flustered.

"Oh, okay," Atlanta said, flustered, "I just thought…" She made her chin tremble, and wiped a lone tear from her cheek.

"I'm sorry," she cried, "I'm just so worried about my little…um…Flossy!"

"It's alright," the boy told her, "I'm sure you'll find him!"

"You're so sweet, thank you!" Atlanta exclaimed, throwing her arms around the boy's neck. She squeezed her left hand out and waved it to gesture to her friends to go and get Pepe.

Archie and Trent's faces were both bright red with anger and jealousy, but they slowly followed the other boys.

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"Yikes! Why do **I **have to carry the crazy, rabid dog?" Odie asked, as he lifted the cage with a yelping Pepe away from himself.

Archie, Jay, and Trent laughed and climbed into Herry's truck, dusting off their clothes. They had to crawl through the air shaft, but at least they had rescued Herry's dog!

"Where's Atlanta?" Herry asked, shoving the keys into the ignition.

"DRIVE DRIVE DRIVE!" Atlanta shouted as she came bolting out of the building and dove into the trunk.

Atlanta's shouts had scared Herry to no end, so he immediately slid on his seatbelt and slammed on the gas.

"What? What is it?" Herry asked as Atlanta climbed into the back seat.

"That guy just asked me for my phone number," Atlanta shuddered.

Everyone laughed as Herry gave his friend a look of obvious non-amusement.

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"This place is creepy!" Neil whimpered.

They had FINALLY arrived at the forest, but there was still no sign of Cerberus.

"Neil, I'm serious, if you don't shut up RIGHT NOW I will smack you over the head with my flashlight!" Atlanta barked.

Neil screamed and put his hands in front of his face. Atlanta and Archie both laughed and continued to walk down the trail with the rest of the group.

"Herry, I swear, I have to put this dog DOWN!" Odie complained. He was still carrying Pepe, because Herry didn't want to leave the dog alone in the truck.

"Okay. Five seconds," Herry groaned.

Odie happily set the dog cage on the ground and wiped his hands, which were covered in puppy drool, on his slacks. Pepe continued to howl and scurry around the kennel, finally managing to bust open the door. Seeing his freedom, the small dog instantly bounded out of his prison and down the forest path.

"Grab him!" Jay called. The seven instantly began to run after Pepe.

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After at least ten minutes of running, the team reached a large clearing, where Pepe stood growling in the middle.

"It's alright, boy," Herry said softly, walking up to his dog, "It's me, Herry. Remember?"

Pepe snapped at Herry's hand and disappeared into the bushes. Herry followed after him. He didn't get very far before he let out a yell of surprise and a huge black Doberman with glowing red eyes jumped on top of him.

The others took their weapons out and ran towards their pinned friend.

"Get…off!" Archie grunted, kicking the creature away from Herry. But the dog just bounced back and leaped on top of Archie, sinking its teeth into his leg.

"Aaaaaaah!" Archie shouted, clutching his leg and kneeling to the ground. Atlanta and Odie quickly ran over to their fallen friend.

"Are you okay?" Atlanta asked, grabbing Archie's wrist.

"I'm fine," Archie muttered, "It just hurts like freaking hell."

"It didn't quite break the skin," Odie said, examining the wound, "But it still looks really painful. You should get it checked out, just to be safe"

Odie and Atlanta helped Archie up to realize that more angry dogs had appeared in the field, and the rest of their friends were trying their best to hold them off. Just when it seemed like the canines were losing, one the larger ones poked its head up and began howling loudly. The others, including Pepe, instantly followed suit.

"What are they doing?" Trent asked, still twirling his nun chucks around in a circle.

"I don't know," Jay told him, when all of a sudden; large running noises could be heard in the distance.

"Um… what's that?" Herry said nervously.

"Can't tell," Atlanta gulped, "But it's getting closer."

And sure enough, a large monster with three skulls for heads and gigantic fangs emerged from the trees.

"Well, we found Cerberus," Odie squeaked.

"Can we run now?" Neil asked. _That_ question didn't need to be answered. The group quickly bolted through the foods, Odie and Atlanta still supporting a limping Archie.

They couldn't go the way they came, since that way would lead them directly into Cerberus's jaws, so they had to find another path and hope it lead to an escape quickly.

"Must…keep…running…." Neil panted. The blonde boy had never run this far in his life even if it was added up all together, let alone in two minutes!

"There's a fence up ahead!" Atlanta called. Then she realized what she had just said. "Oh _shit_! There's a fence up ahead!"

"Well, start climbing!" Herry shouted, "'Cause I'm not waiting around here to be turned into dog crap!"

After everyone was safely boosted over the fence, the group ran down the hill on the other side and stopped to catch their breath.

"I think we're going to have some trouble getting him back to the Underworld," Trent wheezed.

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Back at the school, Jay and the others were breaking the news to Persephone.

"…And we don't know where he is now," Jay said, finishing his story.

"This is bad, this is very bad," Persephone murmured, waving her hand over a vase of wilted tulips. The effect made the flowers stick up immediately, restoring the life back into them.

"So what do we do?" Archie asked. He now had an Ace bandage wrapped around his hurt leg.

All of a sudden, Odie stood up and snapped his fingers.

"Orpheus!" he exclaimed.

"What?" the others asked, confused on who Orpheus was.

"He was a hero in ancient Greece," Odie explained, "He had a magical lyre that could calm even Cerberus into a deep slumber."

"Absolutely not," Persephone said angrily.

"What? Why?" Atlanta asked.

"Elysian Fields is no place for mortals," Persephone told them, "Even those who are as brave as yourselves. Hades wouldn't be happy at all."

"But, Persephone…" Trent began.

"I SAID NO!" Persephone screamed, transforming into her angry form.

"Okay," Trent squeaked.

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"Well, this blows," Neil groaned, as the group stepped out of Persephone's solarium.

"Not necessarily," Archie grinned slyly.

"What do you mean?" Atlanta asked, knowing fully well a plan was hatching.

"Atlanta, you and Jay come with me," Archie instructed, "Herry, you take the others into the weapons room and find a way to keep Cerberus busy until we can find you, okay?"

"Okay…" Herry said, sounding a little reluctant.

"Good," Archie said, turning to Jay and Atlanta, "Come on guys. We're going Mission Impossible on the Underworld's ass."

"Oh my god," Atlanta groaned, cupping her head in her hands.


	14. Into the Underworld

Into the Underworld

Disclaimer: I STILL don't own Class of the Titans!

"Archie what ARE you planning?" Atlanta smiled as Archie slowly pulled open the door to the solarium.

"Sssshhh," Archie whispered, putting a finger to his lips. He stuck his head inside the room and saw that Persephone had opened the back portal to her home.

"Now!" Archie told them, and he, Jay, and Atlanta ducked into the solarium and towards the passage, just a few yards behind Persephone.

"Who are they?" Jay asked, pointing towards the four women in front of the doorway.

"The Horae," Atlanta explained, "They control the seasons and also have the ability of time travel. They guard Persephone's entrance to the Underworld.

"Will they let us in?" Jay asked.

"Oh yeah," Atlanta winked, "They kind of have a thing for teenage boys." She nodded towards Archie, who was going through the doorway.

"Not now, girls," Archie smiled, as two Horae, one with fire for hair and another with what looked like a tree growing out of her head, tried to hold him back.

"Come on, Archie," the one with fire for hair whined, "We haven't seen you in SOOOOO long!"

"Yeah," the one with the tree on her head pleaded, "Stay and talk with us!"

"Please?" a third one begged, this one with blue skin and icicles for hair.

"No time," Archie told them, "We have important business to attend to. Maybe later."

"Ooohhh," the three girls sighed.

Atlanta chuckled as she and Archie stepped through the entrance.

"Um, excuse me," Jay said as he tried to get around the final Horae. She had a flowing green dress and what seemed like moss with flowers sprouting out of it for hair.

"Anytime, cutie," she giggled, smacking Jay right on the backside. The other three Horae chortled with delight.

Jay walked down the corridor to catch up with his two friends.

"Hmmmm…." Atlanta mused, "You may have some competition, Arch."

"Shut up," Archie snapped, punching her lightly on the arm.

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"So where are we now?" Jay asked.

"We are now in Persephone's grove," Archie told him, waving his hand as if to gesture the beauty of the surrounding trees, "It is here that we can get the money to pay Charon."

He walked over to a golden statue of a beautiful woman and pulled down a bag that was hung on her hand. Archie then proceeded to pull out four coins.

"I'll pay Persephone back later," he said, shoving the money in his pocket.

Atlanta led the boys over to a wide green river, where a man wearing a long black cloak and holding a wooden pole sat in a boat, as if waiting for them.

"Am I ever going to see you when you're actually _dead_?" he growled.

"Maybe," Archie said, tossing him two of the coins.

The three kids sat down in the boat as Charon used the pole to push it away from shore.

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"Well, that was fun!" Jay said as he stepped out of the boat.

"You can get up now, Arch," Atlanta smirked to the purple-haired boy, who was huddled in a ball on the planks.

"Okay…" Archie let out a big breath of air.

"What's with him?" Jay asked

"Archie has aqua phobia," Atlanta explained, "He has an irrational fear of water."

"Hey, I heard that!" Archie snapped.

"Archie, how are you going to be able to control water when you're too scared to even take a shower?" Atlanta asked.

"I'll find a way," he told her.

"Right," Atlanta said, stepping inside the large gates to the Underworld.

Then, right before the boys could enter, the doors snapped shut.

"What?" Atlanta exclaimed, rattling the bars.

"Hello, again" a malevolent voice said. It could only belong to one person.

"Cronus," Archie snapped, quickly taking his Hephaestus whip out of his pocket. Jay did the same with his xiphos blade.

"Oh, come on boys, let's not fight," Cronus smiled, taking out what looked like two golden scythes.

"No, let's!" Jay exclaimed, charging towards him. Cronus held up one of his weapons and easily threw the brown-haired boy into the dust.

"Here's the deal, my dear," Cronus smiled at Atlanta, "You bring me Orpheus's precious lyre, and I'll consider not making this little trip to the Underworld a permanent fixture for your friends."

"Don't listen to him," Archie mouthed to Atlanta. But as soon as he said that, Cronus leaped over to the purple-haired boy and used one of his scythes to slash him across the cheek.

"Still think I'm bluffing, Atlanta?" Cronus chuckled.

"Fine, I'll do it," Atlanta told him, trying to choke back tears.

"There's a good girl," Cronus said.

Atlanta took one last look at her captive friends and darted down the trail.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

_Back at the school…._

"Does anyone have a plan at all?" Trent asked, slumping against the wall of the weapons room, "Because my thinking tank is empty!"

"Yeah, I've got one," Herry said, opening the weapon storage and pulling out a large gun.

"No way!" Odie told him, snatching the weapon out of Herry's hands, "You are _NOT_ killing my dog!"

"Relax, Odie," Herry snickered, "It's a neural disrupter. All it will do will knock him out for a bit."

"And I can finally use my tazor!" Neil said happily, twirling the gadget around and electrocuting his hand again.

"Not around _me_ you won't," Trent told him.

The four boys also grabbed an electrical spring-trap and a long rope and then they were on their way.

"Swing by the bakery first, Herr," Odie said as they all climbed into the truck.

"Why?" Herry questioned.

"Just trust me on this one, will you?" Odie asked, "Cerberus has a thing for cake."

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

For one who had visited the Underworld so many times, having a friend who actually _lived_ there, Atlanta had never been to Elysian Fields.

It was beautiful. The trees were white with emerald leaves, the grass was smooth and velvety, and various ponds were scattered everywhere. Dozens of people were just sitting around, drinking wine, and doing, well… nothing.

She was NOT looking forward to dying.

It was surprising though, that among the numerous souls, Atlanta saw one face that she knew. Or rather, one face that she thought she knew.

The man had long red hair, ocean-blue colored eyes, and a pointed chin. Gold armor covered his deeply tanned body, except for his feet, which remained bare.

But it couldn't be Achilles, could it?

"Excuse me," Atlanta said to the man, "Do you know where I can find Orpheus?"

"Ah, but of course," Achilles beamed, "Just over there." He pointed to a sunny-colored gazebo looking building.

"Thank you," Atlanta smiled.

"Not a hassle at all," Achilles told her.

Atlanta waved at him as she trotted towards her destination.

Upon entering the shelter, Atlanta saw a golden haired youth with a short beard and a white tunic sitting on a stone bench and strumming a harp-like instrument just like the one she had played recently.

"Orpheus?" she asked hesitantly.

Orpheus looked op from his lyre and squinted his eyes. Then his face broke out into a huge grin.

"Eurydice, my beloved!" he exclaimed, running up to Atlanta, "You have finally returned to me, at long last!"

"Whoa!" Atlanta said as Orpheus grabbed her in a hug. Then, brushing Atlanta's hair behind her ears, the deceased hero gazed into her eyes lovingly and kissed her smack on the lips.

"Hey!" Atlanta snapped, pushing him off, "I don't even KNOW you!"

"Oh, playing games again, are we darling?" Orpheus said, "Oh, how I've missed you!" He tried to kiss her again, but Atlanta pressed her pointer finger on his lips.

"Hold on there, cowboy," she told him, "I've been sent here on a mission. I need _that_." She pointed to the lyre.

"My lyre?" Orpheus asked, "But of course, anything for you. But may I ask why, my sweet?"

"Um…" Atlanta said, "My friends and I are in kind of a tight spot right now. But I'll give it back if it gets us out of the trouble we're in, alright?"

"Trouble?" Orpheus asked, looking deeply concerned.

"Yeah," Atlanta said, "There's a bit of a problem with Cerberus, and Cronus, and…"

"CRONUS?" Orpheus roared, balling his hands into fists, "Where is he, darling? If he has harmed you in anyway I will string him up by his wrists, I will shove him into the deepest ocean, I will…"

"That really isn't necessary right now," Atlanta told him, placing an arm on his shoulder, "But I do need that lyre."

"Of course," Orpheus smiled, giving Atlanta the lyre, "But I insist that I come to protect you against Cronus. We'll bring a few friends of mine."

"Uh…okay," Atlanta said.

Orpheus raised his hands and three sparks, one red, one green, and one blue, were sent up into the air. A few seconds later, three more people arrived. One of them was Achilles, and Atlanta was pretty sure she could recognize the other two.

The second one, a young man, had slivery-brown hair and chocolate colored eyes. He had on black armor and black sandals.

And the third one, this one a woman, had long raven hair flowing down all the way to the small of he back. Her skin was pale and her eyes were hazel and identical to Atlanta's. She was wearing a short tunic and gold lace-up sandals.

Atlanta easily identified these two as Jason and Atalanta.

"We meet again," Achilles smiled to Atlanta.

"Hello," Atlanta said, "I'm, uh….. Eurydice."

"So _you're_ the one Orpheus speaks so fondly of!" Atalanta said kindly.

"We have heard many tales of you!" Jason chuckled.

"No time to speak now, my allies," Orpheus told them, "Eurydice's close ones are in danger!"

"Then there is no time to waste," Jason said, "Forward!"

The group of five charged towards the exit.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"BAD PLAN! BAD PLAN!" Neil shouted as Herry's truck bounded through the thick forest.

"How was I supposed to know Cerberus would dig under the trap?" Odie snapped.

"He's YOUR dog!" Trent shouted, peering out of the rear window. "SHIT! Drive faster, Herry! He's only a few yards back!"

"Do you _want_ to be going at such speeds that we'll go crashing into a tree?" Herry asked.

"I don't know," Neil told him, "Do you _want_ to die?"

"Good point," Herry muttered, stepping on the gas harder.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"You're a terrible person, you know that, right?" Archie asked as Cronus eyed the two boys from the rock he was sitting on.

"Sticks and stones, Archie," Cronus chortled, "Sticks and stones."

Before either of the boys could respond, the gate to the Underworld swung open, and out came Atlanta and four other people.

"ATTACK CRONUS!" a man with long blonde hair and a beard commanded. He turned to Atlanta and took her left hand (as her right one was clutching what looked like a harp) as the three other people leaped at the god of time.

"My dearest," the man told Atlanta, "You have my lyre, now go. My friends are great warriors, but even they can only hold of Cronus for a short time. Please just know that I love you."

Before Atlanta could retort the man grabbed her chin and gave her a long, hard kiss.

"Um, okay," Atlanta muttered, stumbling back after it ended.

Archie's eyes narrowed and he could feel the same anger inside him as when Atlanta was "flirting" with the guy working at the animal shelter. He didn't notice that the waters in the River Styx behind him began to grow choppy.

Jason, Achilles, and Atalanta had Cronus backing into a corner now. A deep frown formed on his face and he said, "I really hate this place," to himself before congregating a black portal and disappearing into it.

Atalanta swept her long hair over her shoulders and walked over to her descendant.

"Hello, Eurydice," she smiled, "Or is it Atlanta."

"You know who I am?" Atlanta gasped, hoping Orpheus couldn't hear them.

He hadn't. He was off cheering with Jason and Achilles.

"Of course I do," Atalanta said, speaking tenderly. She touched a soft hand to Atlanta's cheek. "Look at you. How you've grown. Melanion still can't believe how tall you've gotten."

"Melanion?" Atlanta asked.

"My husband," Atalanta answered, "And your many times great grandfather."

"Right," Atlanta remembered.

"But no time for catching up now," Atalanta told her, "Your friends need you. Perhaps we'll meet again someday."

"Maybe," Atlanta said, "Oh, and can you tell Orpheus…"

"I will make up a convincing story," Atalanta laughed, "You do look stunningly like Eurydice, you know."

"Well, it saved my butt today," Atlanta smiled.

Atalanta laughed and waved as Atlanta walked towards Jay and Archie, who were now on Charon's boat.

"Who were those people?" Jay asked as Atlanta stepped onboard.

"Old friends," Atlanta replied, looking back at her and her friends' ancestors.

"And who was that guy you were kissing?" Archie asked, folding his arms over his chest.

"My husband, apparently," Atlanta smirked.

Archie almost tumbled overboard.

"Hey, did I mention I can play the lyre?" Atlanta asked the two boys.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"Herry, can I offer some advice?" Neil asked as they zoomed down the streets of New Olympia. The tables had turned and now the four of them were _chasing_ Cerberus.

"Not now, Neil," Herry told him.

"Kind of important," Neil said.

"Fine," Herry snapped.

"DON'T GET IN FRONT OF HIM!" Neil shouted, almost causing Herry to swerve onto the sidewalk.

"Jesus Christ, Neil!" Herry bellowed, "Please don't scare me when we're chasing a giant, evil dog!"

"He's not evil, Herry," Odie reminded him, "Cronus has probably done something to him!"

Cerberus turned and ducked into an alleyway. Carefully, Herry parked the truck and the boys got out.

"Quiet," Trent whispered, "We don't want him to realize we've stopped as well."

But Trent's advice proved to be worthless as Cerberus bolted up and began to walk towards them.

"Too late," Neil squeaked.

"Don't just stand there," Herry told his friends, "Use the disruptor on him!"

"Yeah, about that," Odie said, "It might not have been such a great idea to leave our only sources of protection in the car!"

Herry smacked his hand against his forehead.

"Well, nice knowing you guys," Trent moaned as Cerberus leaned down at them.

Just when the colossal dog was about to snap each one of them up, Jay, Archie, and Atlanta appeared from around the bend.

"Don't worry boys, I'm here to save you," Atlanta said as she began to strum the instrument in her arms.

A soft lullaby began to play and Cerberus's eyes began to droop. It wasn't long before the beast lay down and went to sleep.

"Nighty night," Odie whispered, petting the dog softly.

"Nice job, kids," a high-pitched voice said behind a cloud of purple smoke. A coughing noise was heard and Hades appeared.

"My poor, poor puppy," Hades fussed, patting the hound on one of its skulls, "You just wanted a little exercise, didn't you? You're starting to get a little chubby, aren't you precious."

"How can you stand being around him all the time, Odie?" Archie hissed to his small friend.

"I honestly have no idea," Odie told him.

"Oh, speaking of puppies," Hades said, turning to the group, "Here is yours, Herry." Hades clapped his hands and Pepe popped into his arms. The god of the dead walked over to Herry and handed him the dog.

"He was so exhausted he fell asleep right on the street," Hades told them, "Poor doggy woggy."

"Thanks, Hades," Herry smiled.

'Now, of you excuse me, I have to go home," Hades said, walking back to Cerberus, "Are you coming, Odie?"

"Sure," Odie said, ambling over to Hades.

"Goodbye!" Hades said, waving. Then, clapping his hands again, he, Odie, and Cerberus disappeared before everyone's eyes.

Jay yawned as he looked at his watch. "5:30 AM," he commented, "Well, time for bed."

"I'm really tired," Atlanta groaned, "Think I'll just… take a little nap here." She lay down on the alley and rested her head between her hands.

"Mm-hmm, me too," Archie said, doing the same.

"Yeah, I don't really feel like driving," Herry muttered, holding a tuckered-out Pepe and leaning against a garbage can.

"Neil needs beauty rest," Neil whimpered, falling up against a wall.

"If you can't beat 'em…" Trent sighed, following suit.

Jay smiled as he looked at his sleeping friends. It had been a rough day, and there would be harder ones to face. But he knew they could do it if they stuck together. Then he also got down on the ground, shutting his eyes and resting his face against the cool cement.


	15. Nature of Things

Disclaimer: I don't own Class of the Titans!

Nature of Things

"Ugh!" Atlanta grunted as she swung her racket. The small neon ball easily shot over the net and past her opponent.

"Point!" Atlanta called to Brooke Lewis. It was after school on a bright Wednesday afternoon, and the two girls were playing singles on the court on top of the Academy's roof.

"Jeez," Brooke muttered, "You've got a broken wrist and you're still kicking my ass."

Atlanta laughed as she took her sweaty hair out of its bun. "Still my serve?"

"New game," Brooke told her, "I'LL serve!"

"Fine," Atlanta chuckled, "I'll just have to beat you again!"

"Fat chance," Brooke smirked, throwing the ball up in the air and hitting it with all the strength her skinny frame could muster.

The ball went over the net. Unfortunately, it also went over the ledge of the roof.

"I'll get it," Atlanta called, walking over to the end of the ridge and starting to climb over the side.

"Are you freaking crazy?" Brooke asked, jogging over to her, "Just take the stairs! You're going to split your skull open!"

"No I won't!" Atlanta waved her off, "There are rims along the bricks, I'll be fine!"

Brooke sighed heavily but still let her friend scramble down the side of the school.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

'Okay, maybe this wasn't such a hot idea,' Atlanta thought as she looked down. There were still several feet separating her and the ground, and she had run out of places to put her feet.

"Um, Brooke?" Atlanta yelled. "I'm kinda stuck!"

"Climb up!" Brooke shouted down at her, "Just try not to kill yourself!

Atlanta tried to put a shoe up, but she slipped, loosing her footing. She was now dangling by one hand.

"Oh, God," Atlanta gulped.

"ATLANTA!" Brooke shrieked, "Hold on, I'll get help!" The next thing Atlanta heard before she let go was her friend scurrying against the concrete.

Just when Atlanta thought she was going to die, she felt strong arms break her fall.

"Thank you," she breathed, her heart still beating fast from her drop.

"No problem," a kind voice told her. Atlanta looked up and saw that it belonged to a tall teenage boy with long red hair, dark eyes, and a small sprig of a beard. He had a blue cap pulled over his head and both his ears had little gold hoops in them. He was looking down at Atlanta with a concerned look on his face.

"You alright?" he asked her, still holding her in his arms.

"Fine," Atlanta said, feeling woozy. She tried to get up and try to walk, but she felt too light-headed to do so. She fell over and the boy grabbed her again.

"Steady," the boy told her, "I don't want you to fall over again!"

Atlanta giggled and nodded.

"Okay," she said, "I'm Atlanta, by the way."

"Phil," the boy said, holding out his hand. Atlanta shook it and couldn't help but notice how soft his hands were.

Unfortunately, the moment was ruined when Brooke ran out the doors of the gym accompanied by the whole senior girls' volley-ball team.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"Um, hey Atlanta," Archie said confidently, "Listen, I know we're friends and everything, but I was wondering if you'd like to grab dinner sometime?"

"I'd love to!" a high-pitched voice shrieked.

Archie whirled around, honestly thinking it was Atlanta for a second, and saw that it was only Neil, accompanied by Herry and Odie.

"Dude!" Herry exclaimed, "I didn't know you liked _Atlanta_! Aren't we supposed to be friends or something?"

"It's nothing," Archie said, slamming his locker door. He punched himself hard on the leg as punishment for being as stupid as practicing his lines in the hallway.

Neil and Odie looked at each other tensely. They both had the same thought. Trent may like Atlanta too. Did Archie know this? He probably did, the two boys told each other everything. But what if he didn't know? And how was Archie going to react when he found out Trent felt the same way about Atlanta as he did?

"You can't like Atlanta," Neil blurted out.

"Why?" Archie snapped, "Is it because she's 'just a friend?' Well, for your information, we've gone out! And we had a great time!"

"But Trent…" Odie began before Neil elbowed him.

"Trent would probably agree with us," Neil lied.

"Whatever," Archie grumbled, walking away.

"What's this about Trent?" Herry asked his friends.

Neil and Odie sighed, and told him the whole story.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

Atlanta sighed quietly as she pulled on her clothes for that day. She couldn't help thinking about the boy she met yesterday.

Phil. Hmmm….

She slumped down the stairs and into the kitchen.

"Morning," she mumbled to her mother and younger siblings. David had already left for work. He was some big shot lawyer at some fancy law firm that Atlanta couldn't remember the name of.

"Good morning, honey!" Atlanta's mother said just as Atlanta's cell phone began to ring. Atlanta took it out of her pocket and looked at the caller ID.

It was Trent. Atlanta pressed 'TALK'.

"Hey," she said as she picked up the phone, "Can you give me a ride to school? I need to talk to you."

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"Hi," Trent said quietly to Atlanta as she got into his bright-red convertible a half-hour later.

"Hi," she replied.

Trent started the engine and pulled out of Atlanta's driveway. There was silence for a few minutes.

"Would it just tick you off even more if I told you I was sorry again?" Trent asked.

"I know you're sorry," Atlanta sighed, "It wasn't your fault at all. I've been a giant bitch."

"No you haven't," Trent told her.

"Yes, I have," Atlanta insisted. "You're one of my best friends, Trent. I should know that you would never even think of doing anything like that."

Trent gulped and grasped harder on the steering wheel.

"Listen," Atlanta said, touching his arm and making him tighten his grip even stiffer, "I had a really bad scare yesterday. I looked death in the face and the whole time I was scared that I was going to die without telling you that I was sorry."

Trent smiled, feeling great that he and Atlanta were on friendly terms again.

"I'll always be here for you, Lan," he said.

"Mm-hmm," Atlanta chuckled, ruffling his hair playfully. "Anyways, I met this new guy at school. He caught me when I fell."

"Ah, yes," Trent said, "Phil was his name, was it not?"

"How did you know?" Atlanta asked, sitting straight up.

"Atlanta, everyone knows him," Trent chuckled, "He's supposed to be this amazing DJ who's throwing a great party this weekend for some charity. And now with the added bonus of being a hero…"

"Wow," Atlanta muttered, folding her arms over her chest, "Impressive."

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"It looks like you two have made up," Neil whispered to Trent as he waved at Atlanta down the hall later that day.

"Yeah," Trent breathed, "Looks like we have."

"Um, Trent," Neil said, "Do you maybe know someone else who might like Atlanta?"

Trent whirled around. "Who says _I_ like Atlanta?"

"No one," Neil said, "I just heard a rumor that Archie, sorta, possibly does."

"_What_?" Trent asked, "He does?"

"I don't know," Neil lied, "I just heard that he might. It's those stupid eighth grade girls. They think it's funny to make up stories about juniors."

"Okay," Trent said, still unsure if Neil was telling the truth or not. "Whatever."

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

'Oh, crap!' Atlanta thought as she bolted down the hallway, 'I'm so late! Mr. Ares is going to kill me!'

The small girl turned a corner and almost ran into the person on the other side.

"Excuse me," she muttered, trying to get around.

"Hey!" the person said, "I've been looking for you!"

Atlanta looked up and saw that it was Phil, carrying a stack of green flyers in his hands. He took one and handed it to her.

"What's this?" Atlanta said, looking down at the paper.

"It's just for this thing I'm throwing," Phil said, "Do you think you'll come?"

"Oh yeah, I heard about this," Atlanta said.

_**DJ Panic's Bash**_

_**Oct 7 8:00-?**_

_**New Olympia Woods**_

_**$5 at the door**_

_**(All proceeds go towards helping the Green Alliance)**_

Atlanta gasped. "The party's a benefit for the Green Alliance?"

Phil nodded.

"That's so great!" Atlanta exclaimed, "I volunteer for them every chance I get!"

"Really?" Phil asked, "It's definitely my favorite wild-life organization. It's so great that they're doing their part to help make our earth better."

"I know," Atlanta said, "It's so sad that more people don't think like you."

"Well hopefully, with the donations I get from the party, the more I'll be able to help the Alliance and spark more people's interests in volunteering."

"That would be so awesome," Atlanta grinned.

"Um, this may seem kind of weird, since I've just met you and all," Phil began, "But do you want to have lunch with me today? We can talk more about the party and maybe if you're not busy tomorrow you can help me count out tickets?"

"I'd like that," Atlanta told him.

"Awesome," Phil said, "Well, see you."

"See you," Atlanta said, watching as he turned his back and walked away.

Atlanta leaned against the wall and sighed.

'Wait, a minute,' she thought, 'What am I doing? I'm supposed to be in history!'

And with that, she bolted down the hall before she could waste anymore time distracted by thoughts of Phil

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"Where's Atlanta?" Archie asked as he sat down at his friends' usual table.

"She told me in history that she was going to eat lunch with the new guy," Odie informed him, "You guys should have seen Mr. Ares! He was _pissed_ that Lan walked into the class ten minutes late! He would've given her a detention if she didn't tell him this fantastic lie about having to save baby birds from a hungry cat!"

Jay, Herry, and Neil laughed, but Trent and Archie settled into their seats uncomfortably.

"So, who _is_ this new guy?" Archie asked, popping open his bottle of Gatorade.

"Some DJ," Odie said, "I heard it going around that he's a descendant of Pan."

"Pan?" Jay queried, "The god of the forest?"

"Uh-huh," Odie nodded, "The one and only."

Trent gazed down at where his strawberry-blonde friend and her new buddy where eating. Phil must have said something funny because Atlanta was laughing.

"So did you guys get an invite to this party he's giving?" Jay asked, pulling a flyer out of his backpack and flashing it to the rest of the boys.

"No," Archie retorted, "And even if I did, why would I wanna go to some lame party listening to crappy music and watching people getting drunk and smoking pot?"

"That kinda sucks," a voice said behind Archie, "Because I was just about to invite you to come to my 'lame party'."

Archie whirled around and saw that Phil was standing over him, accompanied by Atlanta.

"You're such a dick, Archie," Atlanta said, punching Archie on the arm.

"I didn't mean it," Archie stammered, "It's just that…"

"No problem," Phil told him, "Feel free to come anyway." He put a few leaflets on the table and then handed Archie a CD.

"Give it a listen," he instructed, "My music's not as crappy as you may think."

Phil grabbed Atlanta's arm and they walked off.

"Oh, dude!" Neil exclaimed, "They burned you big time!"

"Shut up," Archie growled.


	16. Mr Brightside

_**It started out with a kiss, how did it end up like this? It was only a kiss, it was only a kiss…**_

**_-The Killers_**

Mr. Brightside

"Stupid kid," Archie grumbled, "Who does he think he is? Does he think it's funny to embarrass people in front of their friends?"

"If he's so stupid, how come you're about to put his CD into your stereo?" Odie laughed.

It was after school, and Jay and Odie were over at Archie's house, watching him drown in self-misery.

"I wanted to check out what his stuff sounded like," Archie said, "You know, in case I have nothing better to do Saturday and happen to stop by this so-called party."

Odie and Jay looked at each other and laughed as a fast, hip-hop sounding music began to play.

"This is pretty cool," Jay said, standing up off Archie's desk.

"Yeah," Odie agreed, getting off the bed.

"It does have a nice beat to it," Archie admitted, starting to rock his body a little.

It wasn't long before all three boys were dancing. Then, as the chorus hit, a buzzing noise went through their heads, making them stop in their tracks, eyes widened.

"Boys!" Archie's aunt Debbie called up the stairs, "I'm leaving now! You'll need to watch Lizzie!"

Archie, Jay, and Odie didn't respond, they were still hypnotized by the music.

"Honestly," Debbie muttered as she climbed up the steps and into Archie's room, "You have the music up so loud that it's impossible for you to hear me!" She trotted over to the boom box and turning the volume down, snapping the guys out of their mesmerized state.

"Archie, can you please listen to me when I'm talking to you?" Debbie asked impatiently, tapping her foot and clutching her very pregnant stomach.

"What?" Archie asked. His head was pounding.

"I need you three to keep an eye on Lizzie," Debbie told them, "I need to go to my doctor's appointment."

"Okay," Archie said, sitting on his bed.

"Take care, alright?" Debbie said, walking towards the door.

"Alright," the three boys said together.

"Whoa, that was weird," Jay muttered.

"You're telling me," Odie said.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"Okay, Atlanta, calm down," Atlanta told herself quietly as she shook her clammy hands, "You've been to guys' houses millions of times. Of course, they hadn't been DATES, but still…"

Her pep talk was interrupted when the entry of the house swung open, Phil standing in the doorframe.

"Hey," he smiled, seeming genuinely really happy to see her.

"Hey," Atlanta said back.

"Come in," he told her, "Can I take your coat?"

"Thanks," she said, stepping into the large log cabin that was Phil's home.

"My parent's are out," Phil told her, hanging her jacket up in a nearby closet, "Does that bother you at all?"

"No, it's fine," Atlanta said. _He's so sweet._

Phil walked over to her and looked at her clothes, drinking in her appearance.

"I hope I didn't overdress," Atlanta said uncomfortably, pulling her ruffled yellow top down over her tight black jeans.

"You look very lovely," Phil told her.

Atlanta turned bright red. "Thank you."

"Come on," Phil said, "We're going to organize everything in the living room."

Atlanta followed him, her face still blushing from Phil's compliment.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

Two hours later, Atlanta was sitting at a wooden desk while Phil experimented with his different records.

"I wrote this song after hearing all these news reports about how the rainforests are being destroyed," Phil said.

"It's really sad," Atlanta sighed, "But isn't it great to know there are hundreds of people out there who are trying to change things?"

Phil looked unconvinced, but nodded anyways. Atlanta walked up and touched his arm.

"It's really amazing," Phil told her, "I've never felt so inspired to create. Maybe you're my vision."

He touched her cheek. Atlanta felt her face tremble. Phil leaned down and grazed his lips with hers. He began to slide his hand up the back of Atlanta's shirt, and she wasn't stopping him. All she wanted to do was stare into Phil's eyes.

The plants and tress outside were growing furiously…..

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"Alright, she's leaving," Trent whispered to Neil from where they were hiding in the bushes.

"This is so wrong," Neil hissed, "If Atlanta catches us she'll…"

"She won't catch us," Trent muttered, "Besides, she's gone now."

"And enter contestant number two," Neil murmured.

Trent looked up and saw a girl with olive skin and long black hair that he recognized from school gliding up the steps to Phil's house.

"Come on. Neil," Trent muttered, "We have to check this out."

"Can't we just leave?" Neil whined, "I'm tired!"

"No!" Trent told him, picking the blonde up by the scruff of his neck.

"Fine," Neil squeaked, "Just let go of me!"

Trent dropped his friend and slowly crept up onto the porch of the house, Neil following close behind. They both looked into the window and saw Phil and the girl furiously making out on the couch.

"The guy is such an asshole!" Trent bellowed angrily, "How are we going to tell Atlanta? She's going to be miserable."

"Simple," a deep voice said, "You _don't _ tell her!"

Both boys whirled around and saw Phil standing behind them.

"Stay away from Atlanta!" Trent commanded, "I swear I will hit you so hard you'll be three seconds away from death."

"Oh really," Phil smirked, "And who's gonna help you? Pretty boy over there?"

Trent looked over at Neil and saw that he was fixing his hair in his gold hand mirror.

"Kinda ruining the moment here, Neil!" Trent groaned.

"What?" Neil said, finally looking up from his reflection.

"Never mind," Trent said.

Phil laughed and made a loud howling noise up into the night.

"Dude," Neil said, "Stick to playing your little jingles! You have no singing talent whatsoever!"

But his words were cut short when large vines started to creep out from under the wooden planks and encircling around him and Trent.

"What the hell?" Trent asked, struggling to let loose. Neil was squealing loudly and Phil was laughing.

Trent tried to call for help but before he could, another vine encircled his mouth and he and Neil were hoisted up into darkness.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

Archie walked down a flight of stairs in front of the school the next day feeling kinda worried. He hadn't heard from Trent and Neil since last night, which was weird. Archie was the person Neil always called when he wanted to complain about something or other, and this happened at least five times a day.

Zeus knows why that was, since Archie was the first one to tell Neil to shut up when he was being annoying.

Now that the two boys hadn't shown up for school, Archie was getting anxious.

"Archie!" a voice called behind him, it was Jay, running after him.

"Hi," Archie said as Jay finally caught up.

"Do you know where Trent and Neil are?" Jay asked, I haven't seen them all day."

"No, I haven't," Archie said.

"This is weird," Jay muttered, "Herry said that they told him last night that they went to ask Phil about their Spanish homework."

"What?" Archie asked, "Jay, Neil takes _French_. And Trent doesn't have Spanish until next semester."

"Then what were they doing at Phil's house?" Jay wondered.

"Does THAT answer your question?" Archie said angrily, pointed down the Academy's front lawn.

Phil and Atlanta were walking down the pathway, hand in hand.

"Phil!" Jay called, starting to walk up to the newly-formed couple.

"What are you _doing_?" Archie hissed, grabbing his friend's arm.

"Asking him if Trent and Neil were over there last night," Jay said.

"What's up, Jay?" Phil asked as he and Atlanta stepped up to the two boys.

"Herry told me that Trent and Neil were over at your house last night," Jay said.

"That's impossible," Atlanta said quickly, "I was over for five hours, and Neil and Trent were never there."

"Five hours?" Archie asked, his mouth hanging open slightly.

"Time flies when you're having fun," Phil smiled, wrapping his arms around Atlanta's tiny waist and leaning in to kiss her.

"Phil," Atlanta giggled, "Not in front of my friends, alright?"

"Come on, babe," Phil pleaded, "Just one? I'm not even going to see you until tomorrow."

"Okay," Atlanta gave in, "Just a little one."

Phil inclined into Atlanta's body, and turned the "little" kiss, into a PG-13 make-out fest.

"You are such a good kisser," Phil chuckled, caressing Atlanta's neck slightly.

The two split up and walked their separate ways down the street without Atlanta even waving goodbye to her friends.

"I'll kill him," Archie muttered.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

"What the hell?" Odie mumbled as he looked at the screen. He was looking at the audio waves of Phil's CD on his computer.

"What is it, Odie?" Herry asked, coming into the room and carrying an enormous sandwich.

"Herry, I told you that you could come over and help me figure this CD. _Not_ clean out my fridge," Odie sighed.

"My bad," Herry burped, "So what were you saying about the music?"

"Look at this," Odie said, pointing at the monitor, "The frequency picks up in the melody, causing the conscious part of the mind to fail and keep your body moving. The waves go higher in the chorus, making your body completely shut down, but staying upright."

"But why would Phil want a big group of teenagers acting like mindless zombies?" Herry asked through a mouthful of sandwich.

"I don't know," Odie admitted, "But we have to tell the others. Atlanta might be in trouble!"

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0

Atlanta stood on the large stage, her arms crossed. Surprisingly, she thought that two hours before the party of the year she'd be busy taking a shower after her afternoon run, not helping her boyfriend set up his sound station. And _he_ wasn't even helping!

She thought back to what Jay said that afternoon, about Neil and Trent being lost.

"Do you think they're okay?" Atlanta asked Phil.

"Who?" Phil asked, scratching a record softly and placing his headphones over his ears.

"Trent and Neil."

"Trent and Neil?" Phil though out loud, "Remind me, who are they again?"

"Excuse me?" Atlanta said angrily, "Who are they? They're two of my friends! Do you even _listen_ to me when I tell you things?"

Phil couldn't here her. The music in his ear phones was pumping too loudly.

"Hey!" Atlanta shouted, walking up to where he stood, "I'm talking to you!"

She reached over and pulled the head phones off, making his hat tumble off. Atlanta gasped at what she saw next.

Phil had two small horns growing right below his hairline.

"Oh no, Atlanta," Phil smiled, "It seems you've discovered my little secret before I had the chance to tell you!"

He walked over to her and outstretched his arms.

"Stay away!" Atlanta gulped, raising her hands in a fighting motion.

"I'm afraid I can't do that, sweetheart," Phil chuckled.

And with one quick motion, he leaped over Atlanta, raised his arm, and smacked her as hard as he could across the head, knocking her unconscious.


End file.
